TRIBUTES were paid last night after the death of Raymond Baxter, the first presenter of the BBC show Tomorrow’s World, who was also the commentary voice for many state and sporting occasions.

Mr Baxter, who flew Spitfires during the Second World War, died yesterday morning aged 84, on the 66th anniversary of the Battle of Britain.

Friends and colleagues said that he inspired a generation of children in science and technology during his 12 years on Tomorrow’s World, and was respected for his ability to explain mechanical processes in an uncomplicated way.

Over a 40-year broadcasting career he commentated for radio and television on many landmark events, including the Queen’s Coronation, the funerals of Sir Winston Churchill, and King George VI, and the first flight of Concorde.

He also conducted the first interview with Christian Barnard after the doctor carried out the first heart transplant.

Mr Baxter served in the RAF during the Second World War and was mentioned in dispatches for his role in a daylight raid on the Shell-Mex building in The Hague.

He died at the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading, with his daughter Jenny Douglas, 49, and his son Dr Graham Baxter, 55, at his side.

Mrs Douglas said: “He had a love of innovation and challenge, professionally and personally. He was a professional through and through in everything he attempted, from his days as a pilot, as a broadcaster, to his love of sailing.”

Vivienne Parry, a former presenter of Tomorrow’s World, said that she was inspired to take up science by his enthusiasm on the programme. “The things he did — health and safety regulations would never let you do today.

“I’ll always remember him wearing a bullet-proof jacket made of Kevlar, which was a very new material at the time. He wore the jacket while they fired a bullet at him,” she said.

“He was very much a pioneer at the time. He set the standard for science broadcasting.”

David Pickthall, executive producer of BBC Events, said: “Raymond Baxter was without doubt a British television pioneer, whose groundbreaking outside broadcast work for the BBC, beginning in the 1950s, set standards for the industry.

“His iconic presentation of Tomorrow’s World was for many their first entry into an understanding and interest in science and technology.”

In his role as motor racing commentator, Mr Baxter reported on 14 consecutive Monte Carlo Rallies. He also covered 30 consecutive Farnborough Air Shows where, as a veteran combat pilot, he flew a Harrier on two occasions.

Phil Dolling, former deputy editor of Tomorrow’s World, said Baxter would be remembered as one of the great television presenters of his time. “Raymond was fearless in front of a live camera. He possessed authority, intelligence and charisma, and more than that, he was a true gentleman,” he said.

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