I met Doris Zammit in the pleasant atmosphere of a coffee shop near San Anton gardens. As I became engrossed in her wonderful story of achievement, I soon forgot to appreciate the birdsong that filled the air as another beautiful day’s light was fading. We talked until the stars shone overhead, and the crescent moon smiled down on us.

My first question set the ball rolling. From the little I had learnt during our previous chat over the phone as we arranged the appointment, what made me curious above all things was how she succeeded in juggling so many different aspects of her life. Although she is mostly known by the public eye as a television presenter, with Baqghu Maltin being her latest programme, she actually does this only on a part-time basis, along with being a householder complete with full-time job.

Her reply immediately went on praise of her extremely supportive family. “Without their support I could not possibly manage. We work as a team and help each other out. We share responsibilities and my children were brought up to be very independent. Still, it requires a lot of planning so that nobody will suffer, neither the family nor myself. I make sure that they are not neglected and also that I don’t wear myself out. I am lucky though because I can get by on only four hours’ sleep every night!”

She has two children: Ruth who is 28 years old and David who is 19. Doris explained how it was only when Ruth was 12 that she returned to the working world, initially embarking on part-time roles, although she had remained very active even during her years as a full-time mother and householder. She was even runner-up in the Ideal Woman competition in 1982.

Her only regret with keeping so busy is that she no longer finds time for her crafts hobbies. She laughed as she told me how she dreams of taking them up again when she turns sixty-something.

I was interested to learn about how she infiltrated into the world of media and communications. Doris told me how during her school years and into the 1960s and 1970s, she acted on stage and later participated in radio plays on the public relay system. They were the seed for her dreams of TV and radio. However, due to the taboos and limitations in those days, she put everything on hold when she married and started a family.

The pluralism of radio stations in the 1990s offered a new opportunity, and came at a time when she had already resumed a working-life, performing part-time work for the state. She sent a few proposals and was engaged by Radio 101 to produce and present a series of programmes for teenagers called Dhul iz-Zghozija. This was the beginning of a long line of appointments, by Radio 101 and RTK, whereby she was given the opportunity to express her natural talent for script-writing, producing and presenting radio programmes.

In the year 2000, Doris had the opportunity to fulfil her dream of obtaining a university diploma. She thus became the first female Occupational Health and Safety Inspector, having completed her studies while maintaining a full-time job and simultaneously contributing regularly to a local paper as well as acting as duty announcer for PBS. It was then that she proposed a Health and Safety programme for television, which was accepted and manifest in L-Elmu in May 2001.

At this point I was naturally curious to know how the focus on Maltese expatriates developed. Doris was eager to explain, with plenty of smiling throughout, and an excitement in her voice and body language that showed me that she is truly passionate about what she does.

She led me back to her radio days, where one of her appointments included Holqa ma’ l-Awstralja, which she views as the initial step and natural preparation for her television programmes dealing with Maltese emigrants later on in her career. It was since then that she developed a heartfelt desire to produce a TV programme focused on Maltese emigrants, and discussed her ideas with her friend and colleague Tano Vella. It was he who suggested that they could propose a programme covering Canada, at a time when there already was a programme related to the Australian-Maltese communities. Thus Destinazzjoni Kanada was born, and ran simultaneously with L-Elmu.

Doris added that even with such a busy schedule, she always made sure that family time never suffered. Eventually, when the workload became quite intense, and having already presented 52 programmes of L-Elmu, at the end of the second series she decided not to reapply for another but to concentrate her energy into Destinazzjoni Kanada. Later, when coverage of the Canadian Maltese seemed exhausted, Il-Holma Amerikana replaced it, focusing on the American Maltese. In an attempt to eliminate the expense and effort involved in producing a new opening for each series dealing with a new country, eventually Baqghu Maltin came into being. Baqghu Maltin – il-Maltin madwar id-Dinja, or “They remained Maltese – The Maltese around the World”, was intended to deal generally with all Maltese who for some reason or another relocated, without restrictions on the country in question or the reasons why they chose to move away from their island home.

I reflected on the nature of these programmes, instigating Doris to elucidate how all three variations were intended to act as a bridge between Maltese emigrants and their relatives, as well as to educate the Maltese about their kinfolk living around the world. She considers Baqghu Maltin to be in the documentary and travel genre, for she not only provides insight to the lives of the Maltese abroad but also to the wonders of the countries they live in.

These new emigrant-focused programmes required a large amount of research, travel overseas, and therefore financial support on an altogether different scale compared to L-Elmu, which led to the question about who contributed to their realisation.

Doris praised Tano Vella’s contribution to all the programmes, whether he acted directly or behind the scenes. In the beginning they wrote the scripts and produced Destinazzjoni Kanada as a team but eventually Doris took on the role by herself, with Tano remaining a pillar of support on whom she relies for more than just discussing new ideas. He also wrote the lyrics for all three signature tunes, while the music was by Philip Vella. She also emphasised that the Maltese abroad have been instrumental for the success of the programmes, always welcoming and helping make the visits as fruitful as possible.

Regarding the financial aspect, Doris felt inclined to emphasise that the programme is a social, cultural and informative programme that involves a large amount of planning and commitment at all levels and throughout the production process. Often, her ties with those involved bound her beyond the limits of time and professional relationship, yet it appeared that some of the public could suspect that she simply enjoys free travel using the programme as a pretext. “Of course I enjoy my work but it is also very exhausting especially during a trip!” Her expression changed from bubbly to what I could translate as slightly hurt as she privately recalled some such comments. She glorified the contributions by the sponsors, without which she claims the programme would definitely not be possible. She added that PBS is not bound to offer financial support however it provides enormous assistance in the area.

An obvious question arose at this point: how did she locate the people she wanted to interview and select the countries to visit?

Doris smiled as she explained that she would begin by contacting the consuls of the countries in question, and then taking it from there. The pattern was set with the first series in Canada, with consul Milo Vassallo providing plenty of assistance, including enabling the contact with Professor John Portelli, a historian from Toronto who was studying precisely the issue of Maltese emigrants. From then names would crop up as people knew other people and suggestions of contacts poured in. Doris added that email is an amazing tool in this regard: cheap, quick and very effective!

I presumed that Doris must have spoken to several hundreds of Maltese emigrants during the years that the emigrant programmes have been broadcast, all of whom had their own motives for relocating. I wondered what, in her opinion, appeared to be the primary cause for migration.

“Generally, most Maltese emigrate as they search for a better future,” she said. She explained that some people find work opportunities in Malta limited, and therefore that is the principle reason why people relocate. However some move due to the necessity to study abroad, choosing to stay on in their new “home” after they graduate. Others still embark on philanthropic work and make a home wherever necessity requires.

Naturally I became curious as to which was the most interesting or unusual emigrant story Doris had come across in her career. Her eyes became wide, “Well there are three!” She told me of Carl Dalli, a Maltese who immigrated to Toronto, Canada, without so much as the knowledge of how to speak English, or the ability to read or write at all. He had decided that the first job he would find would become his career. His first job as a potato-peeler in a restaurant thus led him to become a very successful caterer owning several establishments. He became rich, but he was also very generous. At one time he embarked on a project to feed a large number of fire evacuees daily until alternative housing facilities were made possible for them. A street was named after him as an expression of thanks by the mayor.

Another interesting story was that of Mary Borg from San Francisco, USA, who learnt how to drive at 66 years of age due to the arising necessity to drive her husband to and from the hospital, while another relatively well known story is that of Helen Pule`. Helen was just fourteen when she immigrated with her family to Tunisia. For 71 years she never returned to Malta, and upon expressing a wish to do so, Doris felt moved to personally cover the expenses so that her wish to attend the feast of St Helen in Birkirkara may come true. Doris was shocked that despite all those years, Helen managed to lead them to an alley, via another one, to the house of her long-lost cousins. When the President of Malta asked Helen how come she could still speak Maltese, having had first an Italian and then a Tunisian husband, she replied that she spoke to God in Maltese!

I was enthused that Baqghu Maltin doubles up as a travel programme in between interviews with expatriates or their offspring. I asked Doris which country from those visited had impressed her most, and why. “Without a doubt, New Zealand, because it is so beautiful!” she replied. She added that Vancouver and San Francisco had also stolen a little bit of her heart.

As we talked on, I was inclined to marvel at the natural talent, inspiration and outgoing personality of this woman, who would go on to impress me a little bit further. Doris told me about how, in an effort to improve her work and make it more professional, she obtained a diploma in journalism in 2002, while last year she won the Harold Scorey scholarship. This allowed her to study television productions, presentation, filming and editing for three months at the London Academy of Television Film and Radio, between September and November 2005, at the end of which she received the news that she had also obtained second prize in the Maltese Journalist Award in the Travelling category!

With such positive creative energy, I am not surprised at all at the success Doris has had in her career, and have no doubt much more is still to follow!