Eddie Mair: I was too ashamed to report attack by youths

Eddie Mair, the Radio 4 presenter, has revealed that he was the victim of a street assault, but said he was too ashamed to report it to the police.

Mair, 52, who hosts the

PM programme, said he was attacked by three youths as he boarded a bus in London, just before Christmas last year. But he said he did not tell anyone about the incident, including the police, because he felt a degree of shame and wondered whether he had been in some way to blame for what happened.

The Dundee-born journalist said despite witnesses urging him to call the police, he simply wanted to go home and put it behind him.

“I told no one. I felt I may have been in some way responsible for what happened. I eventually reported the attack online and the police asked why I delayed and they said this was quite a common response to crime,” he said.