BBC's Harry Gration one of five new Deputy Lieutenants of North Yorkshire

BBC Look North's Harry Gration is one of the new appointments, who will assist the Lord Lieutenant in her duty as the Queen’s official representative across North Yorkshire – the largest Lieutenancy area in the country.

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With the five new appointees, North Yorkshire will be served by 43 Deputy Lieutenants, drawn from various locations, backgrounds and disciplines who all demonstrate overriding commitment to their communities.

The five appointees are:

Dr Harry Gration, MBE,

Dr Harry Gration has enjoyed a career of more than 40 years with the BBC, initially as a sport and news reporter for Radio Leeds through to his current role of presenting the northern regional evening news programme.

During his career, Dr Gration has covered nine Olympic Games, various Commonwealth Games, Football World Cups, Wimbledon and the Golf Open.

In 2013, he was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to broadcasting.

Dr Gration is increasingly involved in charitable work, notably being patron of St Luke’s Hospice and the Cavendish Centre in Sheffield as well as an ambassador for Help the Aged in Leeds.

In recent years, he has helped in the raising of more than £1million for Sports Relief including riding a tandem around the Tour de Yorkshire cycle route, a 139-mile three-legged walk around Yorkshire and pulling a sofa around Yorkshire.

Helen Collin

Mrs Collin was brought up in Newcastle and North Yorkshire and read History at the University of East Anglia.

She started her career at HSBC, working in both London and New York as an equity analyst.

Following this, Helen was a founding director, and latterly CEO, of Investis, a digital communications company, and is now group chief operating officer of Brunswick Group, a global critical issues advisory firm.

In addition, Helen is a non-executive director of two investment trusts and is chair of the Investment and Audit Panel for the Yorkshire Agricultural Society.

She is married with two teenage children.

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The Very Reverend John Dobson

Dean John was appointed Dean of Ripon in June 2014 following 25 years of ministry in the Durham Diocese, serving as parish priest, Area Dean and a member of many diocesan committees.

He serves on the Leeds Diocesan Board and the Bishops’ Strategy Group, is a trustee of St Michael’s Hospice and Ripon Cathedral Development Campaign, and is also chair of Ripon Together, a community interest company which furthers community partnership.

Whilst at Ripon, Dean John has led an innovative strategy resulting in growing the congregation together with the development of the Cathedral as a centre of heritage, pilgrimage and tourism.

Dean John grew up in Yorkshire and studied theology at Durham University.

He is married with two grown-up children.

Christopher Legard

After leaving school, Chris worked for an accountancy firm in Hull before joining Coopers & Lybrand (now PWC).

During his time with PWC, Mr Legard worked in the audit and corporate finance departments, spending time in PWC’s offices in Leeds, London and Boston (USA).

In 1997, Chris left PWC and founded the online retailer, Joseph Turner.

He now lives at and manages Scampston Hall near Malton, a diverse rural estate with business interests including tourism, agriculture and property.

Mr Legard is currently serving as high sheriff of North Yorkshire 2018/19, is deputy chairman of the York Minster Fund, the purpose of which is to raise funds for the preservation and restoration of York Minster, and has previously served as a Governor of Aysgarth School.

He is married with two children.

The Countess Charlotte Peel

Since marrying and moving to Yorkshire in 1989, Countess Peel has been involved in charity work both nationally and locally.

She was appointed to the Council of the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust in 1999, is a trustee for a number of charitable organisations, including the Lord Barnby Foundation, a grant-giving trust and Herriot Hospice Homecare and Countryside Learning, which seeks to connect children and their teachers to the countryside.

Countess Peel is also a patron of Streets of Growth, based in Tower Hamlets, a leading youth intervention charity.

She volunteers weekly at the Citizens Advice Bureau in Ripon as an advisor.

In 2015, she was appointed Honorary Air Commodore to 607 Squadron (County of Durham) RAuxAF based at RAF Leeming.