During lockdown, the TV anchor and his artist daughter Liza expressed their fears by sending each other drawings rather than letters. As the exhibition this inspired opens, he talks about his favourite themes – war, torture, death – and why the BBC needs a full reset

It is difficult to separate events of great national significance from the voice of David Dimbleby. For decades, the broadcaster was the BBC’s anchor for its coverage of historic milestones, from US president Richard Nixon’s visit to Britain in 1969 to the funerals of Diana, Princess of Wales and, most recently, the queen. He has also been the voice of Remembrance Sundays at the Cenotaph – and helmed no fewer than 10 general elections.

On the night of the EU referendum, it was Dimbleby who spoke those fateful words to the nation: “The British people have spoken and their answer is, ‘We’re out!’” The scion of a media dynasty and one-time owner of nine local newspapers, he presented BBC’s Question Time for 25 years and interviewed almost every prime minister in modern history.