[1] Clarke began his career in newspapers on the Yorkshire Evening Post, before joining the BBC in 1973 as Northern Industrial Correspondent.

During the 1991 Gulf War he was a volunteer presenter on the BBC Radio 4 News FM service.

[2] He also presented the Round Britain Quiz, the debate series Straw Poll and, when Jonathan Dimbleby was away, Any Questions?

In December 2005, it was announced that Clarke was suffering from cancer[4] and he subsequently had surgery which entailed the loss of his left leg.

In The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Clarke presented a faux World at One for the Quandary Phase along with Patrick Moore.