Weather station named after presenter Sara Blizzard

Weather presenter Sara Blizzard has had a new weather station dedicated to her as she departs the BBC after more than two decades.

Sara Blizzard, who joined the BBC in 1999, announced she was leaving in January, and will mark her last day at East Midlands Today on Friday.

She became a familiar face and voice on regional TV and radio over her 26 years with the broadcaster, with many enjoying the aptness of her name.

On Wednesday at the Sherwood Observatory in Sutton-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire, she was presented with a plaque for The Sara Blizzard Weather Station.

As part of the surprise, she was told she was taking part in a feature about venues in the East Midlands that depend on decent weather.

Her BBC Weather colleagues Rob Rose and Anna Church spent the day with her at the observatory's new planetarium, to make it believable.

Blizzard worked behind the scenes at independent station Mercia FM before presenting a breakfast show on Leicester Sound.

She then worked as a reporter in Liverpool before joining the BBC, replacing Lisa Dransfield as the main weather presenter on East Midlands Today.

She previously said: "I will miss all my colleagues on radio and in television but the one thing I might not miss is the 03:00 start battling the various storms and in the snow trying to get into to work - but at least I knew it was coming."

Accepting the plaque on Wednesday, she thanked the observatory and her colleagues, adding: "I hope it tells you a decent weather forecast every so often."

The 55-year-old received an outpouring of farewell messages last month.

She said she planned to take on a new challenge - "hopefully involving flowers".

Blizzard's final appearance on East Midlands Today will be on Friday.

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