In his acceptance speech at the Brighton Dome, the news presenter congratulated graduands and advised them “if you see a door a quarter open, always go through it…there is nothing worse than having regrets.”
Nicholas attended secondary school but admitted: “If I had my life over again this is where I would come – Brighton is a wonderful university.”
He told how he had beaten cancer and then praised his wife Brenda for having recently recovered from the same disease. He spoke directly to her in the audience: “Darling, you look fantastic.”
Professor Chris Pole, the university’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor, gave the oration and said Nicholas was “one of the most respected journalists this country had ever produced” and he praised him for his “tireless” work for charities.