Something strange comes over Wendy Pilmer when she hears the familiar theme tune from radio's Sports Report programme - she has to stand up and salute. This is not a Masonic-like requirement of her new post as head of regional and local programmes for BBC North East and Cumbria, merely a long-standing family tradition to which she adheres whether she's in Tesco's or the privacy of her own home.

At the moment, home is a rented flat on Newcastle's Quayside, where, on a Sunday morning, she likes nothing better than taking a cup of coffee and the papers, throwing open the window and watching life go by on the Tyne.

The new job has brought her back to the city where she was born and grew up. "The North-East connection is very appealing. It's fantastic to be home," she says.

She was previously network manager for BBC Radio 4 which, in terms of status, was on the same kind of level as her new post. "But in personal terms, it's a promotion. It's a job I've really wanted to do for a couple of years. I was amazed when it came up," says Pilmer, 36.

"I'm not an ambitious person but have gone to jobs where I've seen a challenge. I have a low boredom threshold. But this is the only job where I've sat there and thought, 'I want to do that'."

The appeal was not only the many different elements contained in the job, but the fact that there's a lot going on in the regions, with the BBC concentrating resources in that area.

"I didn't want to stay in an office where my only connection with the audience is answering listeners' letters. Here, every taxi driver and every person at the match will give you their opinions."

Although she spent 21 years living in the area, going to Durham University from school, this is the first time she's actually worked in the North-East. That doesn't mean she's unfamiliar with what's been going on, including keeping up with the fortunes of Newcastle FC.

"I grew up with the BBC's output and have kept in touch because I've come home, and watched Look North and local programmes," she explains. "It was quite peculiar coming back because I found I knew the programmes back to front."

The programmes weren't a surprise, although the extent of BBC investment and commitment in the regions was a pleasant one. She arrived at a good time last month, as Newcastle-Gateshead made the Capital of Culture short list, Alnwick was named the best town in which to live, and BBC Radio Newcastle's big blue bus hit the road.

The latter may seem minor compared to the others, but getting closer to the audience is one of Pilmer's aims. The bus, complete with mobile radio station and IT equipment for public use, is part of the strategy.

Her post gives her responsibility for the TV, radio and online output in the region. "The editor-in-chief is how I look at it," she says. "The job is multi-media and there aren't too many jobs you can say that about."

There was no agenda on the table when she took over from Olwyn Hocking, who has moved to the BBC English Regions' website operation. But she's keen to get to know what people want and expect of the BBC.

To add to previous research, she wants to interview the audience. "Instead of going out to make a film about a news story, I don't see why we can't go and talk to the audience, and feed their views to the programme-makers directly," she says.

"It's very different when you see your listeners and viewers in front of you, telling you what they think of your programme. I want to find ways of getting the audience to engage with us, whether it's coming into the building or going to them."

Another aim "is to raise the profile of the region within the BBC and to raise the profile of the BBC within the region". Just as people in London might need to be reminded of the massive audiences delivered by the North-East based Auf Wiedersehen Pet, so she feels it her duty to tell the region about such BBC services as the newly-introduced Freeview digital service.

One of her initiatives has been to commission a short film on the region to act as a showcase for what's on offer. "Hopefully, this will be a myth-busting film about the North-East. It's changed so much. If people haven't been here for three or four years and haven't seen, for instance, what's going on at the Quayside, we want to tell them about it," she says.

Viewers will already have noticed the difference with nightly news magazine Look North. The set has been redesigned to look "more friendly" and more items are being presented from outside the studio.

"It will never stay the same," she says. "Media is changing all around the audience. If you look back on the growth of the Internet that tells you a lot about the way people consume the media. People's attitudes are changing all the time and you have to keep up with them."

Until now Pilmer has worked mainly in radio, including making documentaries for Radio Four, as head of specialist music for Radio One, and with Five Live.

She doesn't miss programme-making as long as her work involves her, at least to some extent, in the creative process. "It's a very creative time at the BBC in the North-East. If it was purely an administrative job, I would miss programme-making, but I have editorial discussions every day," she says.

Published: ??/??/2002