Top Gear: BBC picks Chris Evans to replace Jeremy Clarkson as presenter June 16, 2015 The BBC has chosen Chris Evans to replace Jeremy Clarkson as presenter of its flagship car show Top Gear. Evans, who has fronted shows such as The Big Breakfast and The One Show, has signed a three-year contract with the broadcaster to lead a new Top Gear line-up. Read more: Chris Evans is making a [...]
Police called to BBC after man pours petrol on himself outside Broadcasting House June 10, 2015 Update: Police have said the cordon around BBC's Broadcasting House will be lifted within the hour, after dealing with an incident in which a man tried to set himself on fire. Officers were called to the central London premises this morning after the man, who has not been identified, poured petrol on himself in [...]
Top Gear: Chris Evans is making a “secret film” for car show as BBC looks for Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond replacements June 7, 2015 Chris Evans, the Radio 2 DJ and host of the soon-to-return TFI Friday TV show, has revealed he is "secretly filming" for Top Gear, despite having previously ruled out any involvement in the show. Appearing on Channel 4's Sunday Brunch show, Evans said: “Not started yet, but we are doing a secret Top Gear film on Tuesday,” [...]
BBC sells White City site for £87m to Stanhope and Japanese firm Mitsui Fudosan June 5, 2015 The BBC has announced the sale and sublet of its Media Village site in an £87m deal with Stanhope and Mitsui Fudosan. Read more: BBC offers James May and Richard Hammond £1m to stay Following an 18-month negotiating process, four acres of freehold land will be sold and six buildings in White City leased as part [...]
Culture secretary says BBC licence free is “regressive” and hits poor hardest June 4, 2015 Culture secretary John Whittingdale has dubbed the BBC licence fee "regressive", saying that it hits the "poorest people" hardest. Speaking in Parliament, Mr Whittingdale told MPs that charging all viewers the same annual fee forced those on lower incomes to pay more for the BBC's television services. It is his most critical comment on the [...]
Top Gear: BBC offers James May and Richard Hammond £1m to stay June 4, 2015 The BBC is understood to have offered former Top Gear co-hosts James May and Richard Hammond a multi-million pound deal to stay on the show. Read more: BBC loses 5m viewers from Top Gear cancellation The pair have both been offered deals in the region of £1m a year according to The Times, contracts that would make [...]
Ukip crisis: The best reactions so far to the Nigel Farage infighting – and that BBC c**t slip up May 14, 2015 Ukip is in turmoil as some very public in-fighting grabs the headlines. We all love a real-life political drama, but this is no House of Cards and that means there may be some ridicule of the embattled party which appears to be imploding. Of course, photoshop (which surely must have become the thing most feared [...]
Sajid Javid’s busy first day as business secretary – here’s what he said on the BBC, strikes and the EU May 12, 2015 Not even 24 hours into his first day as business secretary in David Cameron's all-Tory cabinet, and Sajid Javid is on the front foot with a media blitz having appeared on three different morning TV and radio shows. Notably, the government's business secretary chose the BBC (appearing on BBC Breakfast, Radio 5 Live and Radio [...]
David Cameron’s cabinet reshuffle sets new government up for BBC clash as John Whittingdale named secretary for culture, media and sport May 11, 2015 David Cameron set his government on a collision course with the BBC yesterday, appointing John Whittingdale as the new secretary of state for culture, media and sport. Whittingdale, who chaired the culture, media and sport committee in the last parliament, has previously been highly critical of the licence fee system used to fund the public [...]
As licence fee critic John Whittingdale is made culture secretary, is this bad news for the BBC? May 11, 2015 Sam Bowman, deputy director of the Adam Smith Institute, says Yes John Whittingdale has described the licence fee as being “worse than a poll tax,” and wants to decriminalise non-payment. That is a good idea: 10 per cent of magistrate court cases are for licence fee non-payment. Every week that means 3,000 people are fined [...]