History Hunters - BBC Wales on Saturday - BBC Frances Donovan is a trained broadcast journalist whose talents have been used across a wide range of programming. She is a sportscaster and news presenter whose natural style and fluency have also made her an obvious choice for factual entertainment and features.

After finishing her English degree, Frances trained in broadcast journalism in Bristol and landed her first professional job presenting the news for SEVERN SOUND RADIO in Gloucester. She quickly moved into television, joining HTV West as a reporter on the current affairs programme, The West This Week, the local arts programme, The Andy Shepherd Wrap and the ITV Telethon. In 1993 she moved to MERIDIAN TELEVISION where she worked as a reporter for the ITN bulletins. In '94 she joined BBC Wales Today as a freelance reporter and has since become a leading broadcaster for the channel.

Frances has a very strong background in sports broadcasting where her own interest in Formula One, horse-riding, skiing, wind-surfing and flying have added to her credibility and knowledge. In 1995 she got the chance to present the news on the BBC Saturday afternoon sports magazine programme and her success opened a number of doors including Sport 24 for BBC NEWS 24, In The Net for Channel 5, Sport. Wales. Extra for BBC CHOICE, The World Cup Experiment for BBC Radio Wales and hosting the tv coverage of the Welsh Open and Women's Golf Tournament. In autumn 2001 she was chosen as the new presenter of the Saturday afternoon sports magazine on BBC1, Wales On Saturday, which continues through 2003. She also co-hosts the prestigious Sports Personality of the Year. In a completely different area of broadcasting, her warmth and easy manner have made her a natural choice for features and entertainment. She hosted History Hunters for BBC1 Wales, leading a team of contestantson a historical treasure trail. For the past three years she has been regional co-host of Children In Need for BBC1. For BBC CHOICE she has presented The Wrap, an entertainment talk show, a special on the Hay On Wye Festival and the BAFTA Cymru Awards. For Discovery she hosted Life In The Garden, a series about the seasonal garden.

In the sphere of radio features and entertainment, she hosted The Big Buzz - a seven-hour marathon of live music and talk - and she was team captain of the quiz show, Game On, both for the BBC. She is used widely by corporate and commercial clients for conference hosting, presenting live conference bulletins and corporate videos. Clients include NCR, The National Trust and the Pembrokeshire Coastal Paths Trust.

Frances lives in Cardiff and London with husband Andy and her border collie, Joe.