Behnaz Akhgar

Behnaz Akhgar (Persian: بهناز اخگر‎‎; born 1980 ) is a British weather presenter of Iranian origin currently working for BBC's Wales Today. She broadcasts the morning and weekend bulletins with Sue Charles, and acts as a relief presenter for meteorologist Derek Brockway. Behnaz, often called Benni, is from a Persian-Welsh background; her first language is Persian.

She entered the Miss Wales pageant in 1998.

Akhgar was born in Shiraz, Iran. She moved to Swansea when she was 10 years old, and her parents opened a shop there; she has lived in Wales ever since. When she arrived in Britain she spoke no English. She attended the University of Glamorgan where she gained a BA in communication studies, followed by completion of a postgraduate diploma in broadcast journalism at Cardiff University.

Akhgar joined the BBC in 2001, working behind the scenes before becoming a picture editor and video journalist. During this time, she applied for weather-presenting jobs, landing her current role in 2008 - on her third attempt.

Akhgar presents the morning and weekend weather bulletins with Sue Charles, and acts as a relief presenter for meteorologist Derek Brockway. She also presents regular bulletins on BBC Radio Wales throughout the day. She has described the harassment she experiences as a female forecaster from "geeks" who complain about her glamorous appearance. In 2012 an error resulted in the weather map behind her showing a temperature of -99 degrees C in Bangor, Wales.

Akhgar has also broadcast features on the BBC World Service about the plight of women in the developing world.