Board of Governors of the BBC
This article needs additional citations for verification. (October 2023) |
The Board of Governors of the BBC was the governing body of the
The governors were independent of the Director-General and the rest of the BBC's executive team. They had no direct say in programme-making, but were nevertheless accountable to Parliament and to licence fee payers for the BBC's actions. Although a 'state broadcaster', the BBC is theoretically protected from government interference due to the statutory independence of its governing body.
The Governors' role was to appoint the Director-General (and in earlier years, other key BBC staff). They approved strategy and policy, set objectives, oversaw complaints, and produced Annual Reports that documented the BBC's performance and compliance each year.
The role of chairman of the Board of Governors, though a non-executive, was one of the most important positions in British media.
Appointments
Governors were usually appointed from senior positions in various parts of British society. Appointments were part-time positions and lasted for four (formerly five) years. Four governors were given specific responsibilities: for Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the English regions.
Governors were nominally appointed by the monarch on the advice of ministers. In practice, governors were chosen by the government of the day. This led to claims of political interference, in particular during the years of Margaret Thatcher's premiership.
Controversy
It has also been suggested that Harold Wilson's appointment of the former Tory minister Lord Hill as chairman of the Board of Governors in 1967 was motivated by a desire to undermine the radical, questioning agenda of Director-General Sir Hugh Greene. Ironically, Wilson had attacked the appointment of Hill as Chairman of the Independent Television Authority by a Conservative government in 1963.
A later Director-General, Mark Thompson, said that "staff were "quite mystified" by the rise of Margaret Thatcher and that the BBC had a left-wing bias at the time.[1]
In January 2004,
In May 2004, Michael Grade took over as permanent chairman. He was to be the last permanent chairman of the Board of Governors.
Chairmen
- Lord Gainford (chairman of the British Broadcasting Company, before incorporation) (1922)
- Earl of Clarendon (first chairman of the British Broadcasting Corporation) (1927)
- John Henry Whitley (1930)
- Viscount Bridgeman (1935)
- Ronald Collet Norman (1935)
- Allan Powell (1940)
- Lord Inman(1947)
- Lord Simon of Wythenshawe (1947)
- Sir Alexander Cadogan(1952)
- Sir Arthur fforde (1957)
- Sir James Fitzjames Duff (1964)
- Lord Normanbrook(1964)
- Lord Hill of Luton(1967)
- Sir Michael Swann (1973)
- Sir George Howard, latterly Lord Howard of Henderskelfe (1980)
- Stuart Young (1983)
- Sir Marmaduke Hussey, latterly Lord Hussey of North Bradley (1986)
- Sir Christopher Bland(1996)
- Gavyn Davies (October 2001 – 28 January 2004)
- Lord Ryder of Wensum(acting chairman) (28 January 2004 – 17 May 2004)
- Michael Grade (17 May 2004 – 28 November 2006)
Final
The governors as of the board's dissolution on 31 December 2006 were:
- Anthony Salz (Acting Chairman)
- Ranjit Sondhi (Governor for the English regions)
- Fabian Monds (National Governor for Northern Ireland)
- Merfyn Jones (National Governor for Wales)
- Jeremy Peat (National Governor for Scotland)
- Deborah Bull
- Andrew Burns
- Dermot Gleeson
- Angela Sarkis
- Richard Tait