STORY
Roger Cook, the investigative journalist and former presenter of The Cook Report, has died at the age of 83 following a short illness. His family said he died in hospital surrounded by his wife, Frances, and daughter, Belinda.
Cook became one of British television’s best-known investigative reporters through The Cook Report, which ran on ITV from 1987 to 1999. The programme used undercover filming and direct confrontation to investigate criminality, fraud, corruption and organised crime, with subjects including drug trafficking, people smuggling, terrorism and the illegal ivory trade.
Before moving into television, Cook worked in radio and created the BBC Radio 4 investigative programme Checkpoint. He received a BAFTA special award in 1998 for his contribution to investigative reporting and later wrote about his career in Dangerous Ground. Tributes have described him as a significant figure in British current affairs broadcasting.