John Birt, Director General of the BBC from 1992-2000. © BBC
Frances Stevenson, secretary and mistress of David Lloyd George, writes in her diary on 21st March 1934: “We dined before the broadcast with John Reith [BBC Director General]—he is a curious character—a cross between a canny Scot and a medieval saint—but more of the fanatic in him than the academic. He firmly believes in the mission of the BBC to purify the life of the nation. Lord Beaverbrook [proprietor of The Daily Express] has been running a campaign against the BBC and Reith says it is a purely personal one against him, and that B is out to bust the BBC.”
On 17th June 1953, Harold Macmillan, then Minister for Housing, writes in his diary about the Conservative government’s plans to allow commercial TV broadcasting: “Television fills the whole political world. There are violent opinions, for and against. The BBC and the Times newspaper (now edited by William Haley, former head of the BBC) are putting up a tremendous fight to defend their monopoly. They have got Lords Halifax, Waverley and Brand—and of course the bishops—to form a society for their support. The alleged American ‘vulgarity’ and especially their handling of the coronation has been whipped up into a great cry against sponsoring. [US networks had broadcast the ceremony, but had interrupted it with advertisements at critical moments]. After all the tedious economic problems which no one can understand, this is one issue on which everyone can have an opinion.”
Hugh Carleton Greene, Director General of the BBC, recalls a meeting with Harold Wilson before the 1964 general election: “He came around to have a drink. He had been very much upset because the BBC had planned the beginning of a series of repeats of a very popular light entertainment programme, Steptoe and Son, [then with 26m viewers] on the evening of polling day. He thought that would keep away particularly Labour supporters from the polls. Harold Wilson that evening began by accusing the BBC of plotting against him. I told him that he must really know in his heart of hearts that that was untrue, and unless he withdrew that remark there was no point in our discussing anything; we could just have…
You have now reached your limit of 3 free articles in the last 30 days.
But don’t worry! You can get another 7 articles absolutely free, simply by entering your email address in the box below.
When you register we’ll also send you a free e-book—Writing with punch—which includes some of the finest writing from our archive of 22 years. And we’ll also send you a weekly newsletter with the best new ideas in politics and philosophy of culture, which you can of course unsubscribe from at any time
Prospect may process your personal information for our legitimate business purposes, to provide you with our newsletter, subscription offers and other relevant information.
Click to learn more about these interests and how we use your data. You will be able to object to this processing on the next page and in all our communications.
