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Daily Mail
30-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Why some BBC staff will be secretly 'pleased' over Bob Vylan's' 'death to the IDF' chant - and how anti-Semitic rant was allowed to be streamed live on iPlayer
The BBC 's Glastonbury scandal has sparked 'total chaos' at Broadcasting House but there are staff who will be privately happy to see the festival on the front pages, insiders told MailOnline today. A senior source has suggested that some will be 'pleased' that Bob Vylan was broadcast ranting about 'death to the IDF' before a sea of Palestinian flags. Another insider told MailOnline that there could even be BBC executives involved in broadcasting the Glastonbury festival, which many believe has been on the wane for years, who will be thinking: 'It is nice to be talked about'. They added that they believe that these bosses think that many BBC viewers will be sympathetic about the difficulties of broadcasting live music from five different stages and not knowing 'what everyone is going to say until they've said it'. The BBC today is investigating how Bob Vylan's 'death to the IDF' chant made it to broadcast without the live stream being pulled. The corporation said: 'The antisemitic sentiments expressed by Bob Vylan were utterly unacceptable and have no place on our airwaves.' Alison Howe, a BBC Studios boss who started out as a secretary but is now in charge producing the corporations coverage of Glastonbury, is in the firing line along with the BBC's head of pop music TV, Jonathan Rothery. Glastonbury organiser Emily Eavis, daughter of founder Michael, was pictured with her arm around Ms Howe this week for a BBC article promising more coverage than ever in 2025 including 90 hours of live-streamed music. But a BBC insider has suggested that while the decision was made in advance not to livestream Kneecap, Ms Howe and Mr Rothery may not have allowed for the 'total chaos' Bob Vylan caused. 'If you can't have senior eyes over it all, don't stream it all live', the insider warned. Streams from stages may all have to be shown on delay next year to avoid similar problems. A delay could allow BBC staff to cut or bleep controversial political statements, which Glastonbury is renowned for. It came as the BBC has admitted it should have cut the broadcast of 'utterly unacceptable' and 'antisemitic' sentiments in Bob Vylan's Glastonbury set - while facing calls to explain why the corporation did not to more at the time. The new statement came as the punk duo Bob Vylan's frontman doubled down on his 'death to the IDF' chant at Glastonbury - while watchdog Ofcom told the BBC it was 'very concerned' over Saturday's live broadcast. The artist who performs as Bobby Vylan - real name Pascal Robinson-Foster, 34 - is being investigated by Avon and Somerset Police over his performance. Israel 's government has been among those condemning the BBC and Glastonbury for Bob Vylan's Saturday afternoon gig at the music festival in which there were calls for the death of Israeli soldiers in what was broadcast live by the corporation. Police have launched a probe into the comments made by Bob Vylan, who led chants of 'Free Palestine ' and 'Death to the IDF' - and the BBC today admitted it 'should have pulled' the live stream of the performance that contained 'utterly unacceptable' and 'antisemitic sentiments'. The corporation has faced strong criticism over its various responses following the peformance on Saturday afternoon, including suggestions it should face charges. The BBC had initially accompanied the broadcast with warnings about 'very strong and discriminatory language', before saying on Sunday: 'Some of the comments made during Bob Vylan's set were deeply offensive.' Now the corporation has gone further in a new statement today saying: 'Millions of people tuned in to enjoy Glastonbury this weekend across the BBC's output but one performance within our live streams included comments that were deeply offensive. 'The BBC respects freedom of expression but stands firmly against incitement to violence. 'The antisemitic sentiments expressed by Bob Vylan were utterly unacceptable and have no place on our airwaves. We welcome Glastonbury's condemnation of the performance. 'The performance was part of a live stream of the West Holts stage on BBC iPlayer. The judgement on Saturday to issue a warning on screen while streaming online was in line with our editorial guidelines. 'In addition, we took the decision not to make the performance available on demand. The team were dealing with a live situation but with hindsight we should have pulled the stream during the performance. We regret this did not happen. 'In light of this weekend, we will look at our guidance around live events so we can be sure teams are clear on when it is acceptable to keep output on air.' And an Ofcom spokesperson has now said: 'We are very concerned about the live stream of this performance, and the BBC clearly has questions to answer. 'We have been speaking to the BBC over the weekend and we are obtaining further information as a matter of urgency, including what procedures were in place to ensure compliance with its own editorial guidelines.' Critics including the Conservatives ' Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp have called for action against the BBC - while comparisons have also been made with the 31-month prison sentence handed to Lucy Connolly for inciting racial hatred when posting about burning down a hotel housing asylum seekers. The singer from the band, who officially keeps his identity secret, also declared 'from the river to the sea Palestine will be free' – and has now posted a new statement on Instagram, titled with the defiant phrase: 'I said what I said.' He also told of being 'inundated with messages of both support and hatred'. Robinson-Foster wrote: 'As I lay in bed this morning, my phone buzzing non stop, inundated with messages of both support and hatred, I listen to my daughter typing out loud as she fills out a school survey asking for her feedback on the current state of her school dinners. 'She expressed that she would like healthier meals, more options and dishes inspired by other parts of the world. 'Listening to her voice her opinions on a matter that she cares about and affects her daily, reminds me that we may not be doomed after all. 'Teaching our children to speak up for the change they want and need is the only way that we make this world a better place. 'As we grow older and our fire possibly starts to dim under the suffocation of adult life and all its responsibilities, it is incredibly important that we encourage and inspire future generations to pick up the torch that was passed to us. 'Let us display to them loudly and visibly the right thing to do when we want and need change. 'Let them see us marching in the streets, campaigning on ground level, organising online and shouting about it on any and every stage that we are offered. 'Today it is a change in school dinners, tomorrow it is a change in foreign policy.' The group formed in their hometown of Ipswich in 2017 and have since gone on to release five albums including 2020 debut We Live Here. The frontman has previously spoken of their struggles to get that first album cleared, describing it as being too 'extreme' for some in the music industry - telling the website Louder: 'It was hard to get it released the conventional way - but it was in our power to release it.' Lyrics on their tracks include saying on Britain Makes Me Violent how there is 'nothing great' about Great Britain, while on Reign the frontman declares: 'Got a message for the thieves in the palace, we want the jewels back.' Touching on the subject of housing in London, their song GYAG states: 'Landlord just raised your rent - mate, get yourself a gun.' As well as tackling subjects such as racism, homophobia, capitalism and toxic masculinity, the duo have also made a big deal about the importance of fatherhood. The singer known as Bobby Vylan has said his daughter gave their debut album We Live Here its name and she also featured on the cover of their single Dream Big. Bob Vylan's entire performance on Saturday afternoon at Glastonbury was live-streamed on the BBC iPlayer but it has since been taken down. Nevertheless, the corporation was lambasted for failing to cut the broadcast immediately after the 'anti-Israel' chanting. The live stream continued for another 40 minutes until the end of Bob Vylan's performance. Avon and Somerset Police said video evidence from the performances would be assessed by officers to determine whether any offences may have been committed that would require a criminal investigation. MailOnline has contacted the force for any further updates. Glastonbury organiser Emily Eavis has described Bob Vylan's chants as having 'very much crossed a line'. She said in a statement: 'We are urgently reminding everyone involved in the production of the festival that there is no place at Glastonbury for antisemitism, hate speech or incitement to violence.' Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp accused Bob Vylan of 'inciting violence and hatred', saying they should be arrested and prosecuted. Glastonbury had said all were welcome at the festival but added it 'does not condone hate speech or incitement to violence of any kind from its performers' Bob Vylan's entire performance was live-streamed on the BBC iPlayer but it has since been taken down And he said of the frontman: 'By broadcasting his vile hatred, the BBC appear to have also broken the law.' Mr Philp posted on X, formerly Twitter: 'I call on the police to urgently investigate and prosecute the BBC as well for broadcasting this. 'Our national broadcaster should not be transmitting hateful material designed to incite violence and conflict.' Toby Young, president of the Free Speech Union, raised the case of childminder Lucy Connolly, who was jailed for tweets she made about deporting asylum seekers and burning down hotels housing them after the Southport killings of three girls at a dance studio. She is currently serving a 31-month sentence. He added: 'She caveated what she said by adding 'for all I care', whereas he [Vylan] clearly does care and wants every member of the IDF, which includes virtually the entire population of Israel, to be killed, so the case for prosecuting him is stronger. But to be clear, neither should be prosecuted.' Health Secretary Wes Streeting called the performance a 'pretty shameless publicity stunt', as he suggested the BBC and Glastonbury had 'questions to answer about how we saw such a spectacle on our screens'. And Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch called the scenes 'grotesque', writing on X: 'Glorifying violence against Jews isn't edgy. The West is playing with fire if we allow this sort of behaviour to go unchecked.' Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary Helen Whately said she was 'horrified' and that that the BBC should have cut the feed, telling Times Radio: 'Given the nature of the attacks on Israel, the BBC should not have kept broadcasting that. They should have cut the coverage immediately.' Bob Vylan crowdsurfs in front of the West Holts stage during day four of Glastonbury festival Liberal Democrat culture, media and sport spokesman Max Wilkinson said: 'Bob Vylan's chants at Glastonbury yesterday were appalling. 'Cultural events are always a place for debate, but hate speech, antisemitism and incitements to violence have no place at Glastonbury or anywhere in our society.' Shadow Foreign Secretary Dame Priti Patel wrote in the Daily Mail that the incident was a 'systemic failure', adding: 'What happened at Glastonbury was dangerous. 'Chants calling for the death of Israeli soldiers crossed a line no civilised society should ever tolerate, and it was shameful that the BBC continued with its live broadcast of this incitement to violence. 'The fact the BBC - a national institution - broadcast this hate-fuelled content will risk legitimising and normalising those views in society.' Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has spoken to the BBC director general about Bob Vylan's performance, a Government spokesperson said. The BBC earlier said it showed a warning during the performance and that viewers would not be able to access it on demand. A spokesperson for the broadcaster said: 'Some of the comments made during Bob Vylan's set were deeply offensive. Despite the outrage Bobby Vylan, who performs pseudonymously alongside bandmate Bobbie Vylan, posted a photo of some ice cream as he mocked 'Zionists crying on socials' 'During this live stream on iPlayer, which reflected what was happening on stage, a warning was issued on screen about the very strong and discriminatory language. We have no plans to make the performance available on demand.' The Israeli embassy said it was 'deeply disturbed by the inflammatory and hateful rhetoric expressed on stage at the Glastonbury Festival'. The Campaign Against Antisemitism said it would be formally complaining to the BBC over what the group described as an 'outrageous decision' to broadcast Bob Vylan. A spokesperson said: 'Our national broadcaster must apologise for its dissemination of this extremist vitriol, and those responsible must be removed from their positions.' A former head of news and current affairs at Channel 4 questioned the BBC's preparation ahead of Bob Vylan's set. Dorothy Byrne, former head of news and current affairs at Channel 4 Television, told the Today Programme on BBC Radio 4: 'One wonders what research the BBC did about Bob Vylan because if you look online, he had previously made radical statements about Israel, which is his right, of course. 'But it calls into question the decision to stream him live and then, in view of what was happening in Glastonbury. 'They should really have had a politics producer in the gallery ready to advise them when and if something went wrong. 'I would have expected them to have an alternative feed available anyway because things can go wrong and there were lots of other acts on at the time. 'I'm surprised they just left it on with a warning rather than cut away because it's wrong to call for anyone to be killed. 'You're not, when you're covering a music festival, able to balance up another perspective in a duly impartial debate and coverage of a music festival is not the same as a discussion on the Today Programme. 'But it does mean that yet again we're discussing BBC coverage of Gaza when we should be discussing events in Gaza and the BBC does seem to keep getting itself into grave problems with Gaza.' A former director of communications for ex-prime minister David Cameron said the BBC should cut the feed when there is 'a hint of hate speech' at Glastonbury Festival. Sir Craig Oliver, a former editor of the BBC Six O'Clock News and Ten O'Clock News, told the Today Programme: 'It's clear that for its viewers and the BBC's own reputation there does need to be some form of mechanism that whenever there is a hint of hate speech that you can cut the feed. 'I suspect at next year's Glastonbury there's going to have to be a senior editorial figure who does understand the sensitivities and is going to cut the feed.
Daily Mail
30-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Why some BBC staff will be secretly 'pleased' over Bobby Vylan's' 'death to the IDF' chant - and how anti-Semitic rant was allowed to be streamed live on iPlayer
The BBC 's Glastonbury scandal has sparked 'total chaos' at Broadcasting House but there are staff who will be privately happy to see the festival on the front pages, insiders told MailOnline today. A senior source has suggested that some will be 'pleased' that Bobby Vylan was broadcast ranting about 'death to the IDF' before a sea of Palestinian flags. Another insider told MailOnline that there could even be BBC executives involved in broadcasting the Glastonbury festival, which many believe has been on the wane for years, who will be thinking: 'It is nice to be talked about'. They added that they believe that these bosses think that many BBC viewers will be sympathetic about the difficulties of broadcasting live music from five different stages and not knowing 'what everyone is going to say until they've said it'. The BBC today is investigating how Bobby Vylan 'death to the IDF' chant made it to broadcast without the live stream being pulled. The corporation said: 'The antisemitic sentiments expressed by Bob Vylan were utterly unacceptable and have no place on our airwaves.' Alison Howe, a BBC Studios boss who started out as a secretary but is now in charge producing the corporations coverage of Glastonbury, is in the firing line along with the BBC's head of pop music TV, Jonathan Rothery. Glastonbury organiser Emily Eavis, daughter of founder Michael, was pictured with her arm around Ms Howe this week for a BBC article promising more coverage than ever in 2025 including 90 hours of live-streamed music. But a BBC insider has suggested that while the decision was made in advance not to livestream Kneecap, Ms Howe and Mr Rothery may not have allowed for the 'total chaos' Bobby Vylan caused. 'If you can't have senior eyes over it all, don't stream it all live', the insider warned. Streams from stages may all have to be shown on delay next year to avoid similar problems. A delay could allow BBC staff to cut or bleep controversial political statements, which Glastonbury is renowned for. It came as the BBC has admitted it should have cut the broadcast of 'utterly unacceptable' and 'antisemitic' sentiments in Bob Vylan's Glastonbury set - while facing calls to explain why the corporation did not to more at the time. The new statement came as the punk duo Bob Vylan's frontman doubled down on his 'death to the IDF' chant at Glastonbury - while watchdog Ofcom told the BBC it was 'very concerned' over Saturday's live broadcast. The artist who performs as Bobby Vylan - real name Pascal Robinson-Foster, 34 - is being investigated by Avon and Somerset Police over his performance. Israel 's government has been among those condemning the BBC and Glastonbury for Bob Vylan's Saturday afternoon gig at the music festival in which there were calls for the death of Israeli soldiers in what was broadcast live by the corporation. Police have launched a probe into the comments made by Bob Vylan, who led chants of 'Free Palestine ' and 'Death to the IDF' - and the BBC today admitted it 'should have pulled' the live stream of the performance that contained 'utterly unacceptable' and 'antisemitic sentiments'. The corporation has faced strong criticism over its various responses following the peformance on Saturday afternoon, including suggestions it should face charges. The BBC had initially accompanied the broadcast with warnings about 'very strong and discriminatory language', before saying on Sunday: 'Some of the comments made during Bob Vylan's set were deeply offensive.' Now the corporation has gone further in a new statement today saying: 'Millions of people tuned in to enjoy Glastonbury this weekend across the BBC's output but one performance within our live streams included comments that were deeply offensive. 'The BBC respects freedom of expression but stands firmly against incitement to violence. 'The antisemitic sentiments expressed by Bob Vylan were utterly unacceptable and have no place on our airwaves. We welcome Glastonbury's condemnation of the performance. 'The performance was part of a live stream of the West Holts stage on BBC iPlayer. The judgement on Saturday to issue a warning on screen while streaming online was in line with our editorial guidelines. 'In addition, we took the decision not to make the performance available on demand. The team were dealing with a live situation but with hindsight we should have pulled the stream during the performance. We regret this did not happen. 'In light of this weekend, we will look at our guidance around live events so we can be sure teams are clear on when it is acceptable to keep output on air.' And an Ofcom spokesperson has now said: 'We are very concerned about the live stream of this performance, and the BBC clearly has questions to answer. 'We have been speaking to the BBC over the weekend and we are obtaining further information as a matter of urgency, including what procedures were in place to ensure compliance with its own editorial guidelines.' Critics including the Conservatives ' Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp have called for action against the BBC - while comparisons have also been made with the 31-month prison sentence handed to Lucy Connolly for inciting racial hatred when posting about burning down a hotel housing asylum seekers. The singer from the band, who officially keeps his identity secret, also declared 'from the river to the sea Palestine will be free' – and has now posted a new statement on Instagram, titled with the defiant phrase: 'I said what I said.' He also told of being 'inundated with messages of both support and hatred'. Robinson-Foster wrote: 'As I lay in bed this morning, my phone buzzing non stop, inundated with messages of both support and hatred, I listen to my daughter typing out loud as she fills out a school survey asking for her feedback on the current state of her school dinners. 'She expressed that she would like healthier meals, more options and dishes inspired by other parts of the world. 'Listening to her voice her opinions on a matter that she cares about and affects her daily, reminds me that we may not be doomed after all. 'Teaching our children to speak up for the change they want and need is the only way that we make this world a better place. 'As we grow older and our fire possibly starts to dim under the suffocation of adult life and all its responsibilities, it is incredibly important that we encourage and inspire future generations to pick up the torch that was passed to us. 'Let us display to them loudly and visibly the right thing to do when we want and need change. 'Let them see us marching in the streets, campaigning on ground level, organising online and shouting about it on any and every stage that we are offered. 'Today it is a change in school dinners, tomorrow it is a change in foreign policy.' The group formed in their hometown of Ipswich in 2017 and have since gone on to release five albums including 2020 debut We Live Here. The frontman has previously spoken of their struggles to get that first album cleared, describing it as being too 'extreme' for some in the music industry - telling the website Louder: 'It was hard to get it released the conventional way - but it was in our power to release it.' Lyrics on their tracks include saying on Britain Makes Me Violent how there is 'nothing great' about Great Britain, while on Reign the frontman declares: 'Got a message for the thieves in the palace, we want the jewels back.' Touching on the subject of housing in London, their song GYAG states: 'Landlord just raised your rent - mate, get yourself a gun.' As well as tackling subjects such as racism, homophobia, capitalism and toxic masculinity, the duo have also made a big deal about the importance of fatherhood. The singer known as Bobby Vylan has said his daughter gave their debut album We Live Here its name and she also featured on the cover of their single Dream Big. Bob Vylan's entire performance on Saturday afternoon at Glastonbury was live-streamed on the BBC iPlayer but it has since been taken down. Nevertheless, the corporation was lambasted for failing to cut the broadcast immediately after the 'anti-Israel' chanting. The live stream continued for another 40 minutes until the end of Bob Vylan's performance. Avon and Somerset Police said video evidence from the performances would be assessed by officers to determine whether any offences may have been committed that would require a criminal investigation. MailOnline has contacted the force for any further updates. Glastonbury organiser Emily Eavis has described Bob Vylan's chants as having 'very much crossed a line'. She said in a statement: 'We are urgently reminding everyone involved in the production of the festival that there is no place at Glastonbury for antisemitism, hate speech or incitement to violence.' Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp accused Bob Vylan of 'inciting violence and hatred', saying they should be arrested and prosecuted. And he said of the frontman: 'By broadcasting his vile hatred, the BBC appear to have also broken the law.' Mr Philp posted on X, formerly Twitter: 'I call on the police to urgently investigate and prosecute the BBC as well for broadcasting this. 'Our national broadcaster should not be transmitting hateful material designed to incite violence and conflict.' Toby Young, president of the Free Speech Union, raised the case of childminder Lucy Connolly, who was jailed for tweets she made about deporting asylum seekers and burning down hotels housing them after the Southport killings of three girls at a dance studio. She is currently serving a 31-month sentence. He added: 'She caveated what she said by adding 'for all I care', whereas he [Vylan] clearly does care and wants every member of the IDF, which includes virtually the entire population of Israel, to be killed, so the case for prosecuting him is stronger. But to be clear, neither should be prosecuted.' Health Secretary Wes Streeting called the performance a 'pretty shameless publicity stunt', as he suggested the BBC and Glastonbury had 'questions to answer about how we saw such a spectacle on our screens'. And Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch called the scenes 'grotesque', writing on X: 'Glorifying violence against Jews isn't edgy. The West is playing with fire if we allow this sort of behaviour to go unchecked.' Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary Helen Whately said she was 'horrified' and that that the BBC should have cut the feed, telling Times Radio: 'Given the nature of the attacks on Israel, the BBC should not have kept broadcasting that. They should have cut the coverage immediately.' Liberal Democrat culture, media and sport spokesman Max Wilkinson said: 'Bob Vylan's chants at Glastonbury yesterday were appalling. 'Cultural events are always a place for debate, but hate speech, antisemitism and incitements to violence have no place at Glastonbury or anywhere in our society.' Shadow Foreign Secretary Dame Priti Patel wrote in the Daily Mail that the incident was a 'systemic failure', adding: 'What happened at Glastonbury was dangerous. 'Chants calling for the death of Israeli soldiers crossed a line no civilised society should ever tolerate, and it was shameful that the BBC continued with its live broadcast of this incitement to violence. 'The fact the BBC - a national institution - broadcast this hate-fuelled content will risk legitimising and normalising those views in society.' Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has spoken to the BBC director general about Bob Vylan's performance, a Government spokesperson said. The BBC earlier said it showed a warning during the performance and that viewers would not be able to access it on demand. A spokesperson for the broadcaster said: 'Some of the comments made during Bob Vylan's set were deeply offensive. 'During this live stream on iPlayer, which reflected what was happening on stage, a warning was issued on screen about the very strong and discriminatory language. We have no plans to make the performance available on demand.' The Israeli embassy said it was 'deeply disturbed by the inflammatory and hateful rhetoric expressed on stage at the Glastonbury Festival'. The Campaign Against Antisemitism said it would be formally complaining to the BBC over what the group described as an 'outrageous decision' to broadcast Bob Vylan. A spokesperson said: 'Our national broadcaster must apologise for its dissemination of this extremist vitriol, and those responsible must be removed from their positions.' A former head of news and current affairs at Channel 4 questioned the BBC's preparation ahead of Bob Vylan's set. Dorothy Byrne, former head of news and current affairs at Channel 4 Television, told the Today Programme on BBC Radio 4: 'One wonders what research the BBC did about Bob Vylan because if you look online, he had previously made radical statements about Israel, which is his right, of course. 'But it calls into question the decision to stream him live and then, in view of what was happening in Glastonbury. 'They should really have had a politics producer in the gallery ready to advise them when and if something went wrong. 'I would have expected them to have an alternative feed available anyway because things can go wrong and there were lots of other acts on at the time. 'I'm surprised they just left it on with a warning rather than cut away because it's wrong to call for anyone to be killed. 'You're not, when you're covering a music festival, able to balance up another perspective in a duly impartial debate and coverage of a music festival is not the same as a discussion on the Today Programme. 'But it does mean that yet again we're discussing BBC coverage of Gaza when we should be discussing events in Gaza and the BBC does seem to keep getting itself into grave problems with Gaza.' A former director of communications for ex-prime minister David Cameron said the BBC should cut the feed when there is 'a hint of hate speech' at Glastonbury Festival. Sir Craig Oliver, a former editor of the BBC Six O'Clock News and Ten O'Clock News, told the Today Programme: 'It's clear that for its viewers and the BBC's own reputation there does need to be some form of mechanism that whenever there is a hint of hate speech that you can cut the feed. 'I suspect at next year's Glastonbury there's going to have to be a senior editorial figure who does understand the sensitivities and is going to cut the feed.
Daily Mail
09-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Inside the battle to save Strictly: Revolting slur that's caused 'terrible fear' over contestants' behaviour exposed by KATIE HIND - as insiders leak list of who bosses are desperate to sign up
Some truly frantic meetings are taking place right now at Broadcasting House, the BBC 's famous London headquarters near Regent Street. With just weeks to go to complete the celebrity line-up for this year's Strictly Come Dancing, the show's bosses are in agonies as they try to work out who to hire.
Spectator
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Spectator
There will never be another Alan Yentob
In the excellent BBC comedy series W1A, which poked a harsher degree of fun at its makers than many would have believed credible, there is one especially amusing throwaway gag. The hapless Ian Fletcher (Hugh Bonneville) is taken on a tour of Broadcasting House, and briefly veers into a meeting room, where, to his surprise, he sees Salman Rushdie and Alan Yentob engaged in a game of arm wrestling. Both men look up at him in pained surprise, and a baffled Fletcher makes his excuses and leaves. I was reminded of this moment yesterday when the news broke of Yentob's death, at the age of 78. My initial response was to think predominantly of the broadcaster's significant, even overwhelming self-regard and preening. There have been few figures in public life more associated with both name-dropping ( 'Salman' was probably the least of it) and putting themselves front and centre when it came to the programmes that he was responsible for. This reached a nadir in 2007 with the so-called 'Noddygate' scandal, in which shots of Yentob nodding gravely and looking serious were cut and pasted into Imagine interviews that he did not conduct.
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
How Alan Yentob changed the BBC for the better (and worse)
With the death of Alan Yentob, the BBC's erstwhile creative director and broadcasting titan, the corporation has lost the man who has done more than virtually anyone else in the post-war era to define it in the public imagination, for good and for ill alike. For nearly six decades, Yentob was a seismic figure within and without the confines of Broadcasting House, a man whose vision reshaped its cultural output. He was that rare behind-the-scenes impresario who was also a household name, and his willingness to put himself on camera suggested that he saw himself as being as much a star as the figures he interviewed throughout his career, from Orson Welles to David Bowie. Yentob's time with the BBC was a career of dizzying highs and lows, of glittering brilliance tainted by hubris. In addition to the art documentary series Arena and Imagine, he was directly responsible for many of the corporation's most iconic and memorable programmes during his tenure as BBC controller, firstly of BBC Two from 1987 to 1993 and then BBC One from 1993 and 1996. In retrospect, the high watermark of his career was as an executive, rather than as a presenter. During this period, he commissioned programmes such as Pride and Prejudice (the series which made Colin Firth a heartthrob), Middlemarch, The Office and Absolutely Fabulous (the latter of which paid him appropriately backhanded homage by calling the character of a Moroccan houseboy 'Yentob'). He furthered the reach of Have I Got News For You, which began in 1990 but only really achieved critical mass under Yentob's enthusiastic patronage. That he would occasionally become one of its satirical targets was merely a price that he willingly paid to see it become the BBC's most popular and longest-running televised comedy panel show. Yet the difficulty with Yentob was that he was vain and inclined to believe that he was a genius in his own right rather than a man who was at his best when allowing other, more talented individuals to thrive. The difficulties really began in 2004 when he was given the all-encompassing post of 'BBC creative director', which allowed him to do more or less as he wished. Anyone watching him closely might have expected that a fall was coming, and it duly did. The only surprise in retrospect is that it took over a decade to arrive. He had joined the BBC in 1968 as a trainee, the only non-Oxbridge graduate in his cohort, and quickly ascended the corporation's ranks, a testament to his charisma and relentless drive. By the time he became controller of BBC Two in 1987, he had already established himself as the most influential figure in British television, and many of the shows that he commissioned there are justly regarded as classics. (Without him, for instance, it's fair to say there would be no Wallace and Gromit.) These years were nothing short of a cultural renaissance for the channel; at a time when many might have asked what BBC Two stood for, he transformed it into a crucible of televisual innovation, which more than held its own against its rival Channel 4. Some, not least Yentob himself, might have whispered that he was the most significant figure at the corporation since the days of Sir John Reith. When his flagship arts show Arena was at its peak, such self-congratulation did not seem wholly absurd. The show managed to look at both high and low culture with the same blend of seriousness and commitment, suggesting that punk rock and Orson Welles alike were worthy of intellectual assessment. This not only influenced broadsheet newspapers' cultural supplements but also led to Yentob himself fronting Imagine, a show that was dogged by controversy in 2007 when it was revealed that other journalists had conducted some of the interviews, with shots of Yentob frowning and looking quizzical dropped in. This was known as 'Noddygate', on account of the number of shots of the presenter nodding and looking sage. While a staff investigation reportedly found that none of that footage had been broadcast, this made Yentob a marked man in the estimation of junior colleagues, who were all too aware that other, less venerable figures had lost their jobs for rather less. All the same, Yentob was a serious contender for the role of director-general. He later said, with a typical combination of apparent self-deprecation and considerable self-regard that, 'I'm really glad I didn't get it. I'd probably have been sacked. I think I could have run the BBC, but obviously I would have run it in my way.' Despite his self-consciously cerebral mien, there was also something of the overgrown child about Yentob, a sense that he was giddily enjoying his power and influence. It was little surprise, with this in mind, that he launched CBBC and CBeebies, cementing the BBC's role as a nurturer of young minds. It was ironic, then, that his legacy was irrevocably marred by his involvement with Kids Company, the charity that he served as chairman for and which collapsed ignominiously in 2015 due to accusations of financial mismanagement. Yentob was accused of trying to influence the BBC's coverage of the scandal. His meddling was described by MPs as 'unwise at best, deliberately intimidating at worst,' and he resigned from his much-prized creative director role in December 2015. (An internal BBC inquiry concluded that he did not affect its reporting.) Yentob's penchant for self-promotion and name-dropping—Clive James once quipped he had heard the executive was 'in the Red Sea, in conversation with the Dalai Lama'— allowed him to become a whipping boy for all those who disliked the modern BBC. He was seen as overpaid (in 2013, it was revealed his annual salary was more than £330,000), out of touch and, in the inimitable words of the Daily Mail, a 'profligate luvvie'. Yet it is hard to view his ultimate legacy as purely a tainted one. Yentob made some of the most memorable and successful television of the last few decades. It is this, rather than his many failings and excessive self-confidence, that should ultimately stand as his lasting memorial. 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