Dermot Murnaghan's zenith as a journalist came in a titanic encounter with former cabinet minister Peter Mandelson.

It had been revealed Mandelson had taken a loan for a home from former paymaster general Geoffrey Robinson.

During the interview on ITN's lunchtime news, Murnaghan pressed Mandelson over whether the loan had been declared on his mortgage application form as was required.

Mandelson resigned shortly after the interview

And Mandelson's resignation as trade and industry secretary the next day helped Murnaghan scoop interview of the year at the 1998 Royal Television Society Journalism Awards.

Murnaghan is equally popular with the general public, coming sixth in a recent poll to find viewers' favourite newsreaders.

His smooth style has helped Murnaghan make ITN's evening news his own, co-presenting with Mary Nightingale, after stints on the commercial station's other bulletins.

He had been anchor on the ITN nightly news, the 11pm bulletin launched in 1999 and had occasionally appeared on its predecessor, the 10 O'Clock News.

Lunchtime job

There has been press speculation that senior ITN newsreaders, including Murnaghan, were resisting changes that would have seen them taking on bulletins on ITN's flagging rolling news channel.

But he was an ITN stalwart, earlier co-presenting the lunchtime news and daily summaries on ITV from 1992.

Murnaghan grew up in Hollywood, outside Belfast, his father's home town.

After a history degree at Sussex University, Murnaghan took a master's degree and a journalism course at London's City University.

Murnaghan fronted coverage of the death of Diana

His journalism career proper started with the Coventry Evening Telegraph, before a stint as a researcher at Channel 4 followed by a reporter's job.

He then moved to Switzerland to work as a reporter on the European Business Channel, but it was his return to presenting the breakfast news show, Channel 4 Daily, that sparked a move to ITN.

There are more strings to his bow than newsreading. As well as presenting ITV's current affairs show, the Big Story, he has also fronted ITV's budget and election coverage and a true crime show, Britain's Most Wanted.

He also worked on a number of documentaries before joining ITN.

And as well as his previous experience taking on the lighter tone of breakfast news, Murnaghan says he will have no problems getting up in the morning, as he is a father of four.

He lives in London with wife, fellow journalist Maria Keegan, and their three daughters, Kitty, Molly, and Alice, and recently arrived son Jack Patrick.