Robinson was born in Liverpool, the son of an accountant father, and educated at Raynes Park Grammar School and Exeter College, Oxford. He then became a journalist for the Sunday Chronicle, the Sunday Graphic, the Sunday Times and The Sunday Telegraph. He began working on television as a journalist in 1955. During the 1960s and 1970s, he presented the series Open House, Picture Parade, Points of View, the leading literary quiz Take it or Leave it, Ask the Family, BBC-3 – including the discussion during which Kenneth Tynan became the first person to say "fuck" on British television – and Call My Bluff. In 1967, Robinson presented the edition of The Look of the Week in which classical musicologist Hans Keller was brought face to face with the young Pink Floyd. He wrote and presented The Fifties on BBC1. Robinson was the presenter of The Book Programme on BBC2 from 1973–80 and a number of spin-off documentaries, such as B. Traven – A Mystery Solved. He wrote and presented several BBC1 documentaries under the title Robinson's Travels, among them The Mormon Trail, Cruising and Indian Journey. In 1986 he wrote and presented The Magic Rectangle, one of the BBC documentaries marking the 50th anniversary of television. On radio, he presented Today, BBC Radio 4's flagship morning news show, and Stop The Week, a fiercely competitive talk programme. Robinson fronted Brain of Britain on BBC Radio 4 for many years, but was replaced by Russell Davies during the 2004 series owing to illness. He returned to host the new series in 2005 until handing over the reins to Peter Snow in 2007. In September 2008 Robinson chaired the special Brain of Brains and Top Brain editions of the quiz and returned to host the series in 2008; Davies then replaced him for the 2009 shows. In August 2010 it was announced that Robinson was to step down permanently from Brain of Britain to be replaced by Davies. Private Eye used to lampoon Robinson under the nickname 'Smuggins'. In a sketch on the BBC's Not the Nine O'Clock News he was impersonated by an actor wearing a cricket box over his forehead. Robinson was also the subject of a sketch by Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie in the second series of A Bit of Fry and Laurie, and Fry occasionally did an affectionate impression of Robinson when hosting the quiz show QI. He was also lampooned by comedy duoDavid Mitchell and Robert Webb in the second series of That Mitchell and Webb Look, where he was shown as the presenter of an early version of their fictional gameshow Numberwang. He appeared in a Viz comic strip under the name Robin Robertson. He was the father ofthe actressLucy Robinson. Robinson was famed for his comb-over hairstyle.
Personal life
Robinson married actress Josephine Richard, whom he had met in 1958 while a student at Oxford. They had three children born between 1960 and 1972. The couple remained together for more than fifty years, until Robert's death, aged 83. He died in St Mary's Hospital, Paddington on 12 August 2011 after a long period of ill health.
