Chair of the BBC
Head of British Broadcasting Corporation's board
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Chair of the BBC, referred to as Chairman when the incumbent is male and Chairwoman when female, is the head of the BBC Board, responsible for maintaining the independence of the BBC and overseeing the functioning of the BBC to fulfil its mission.[1][2] The chair leads the process for appointing the Director-General and can dismiss the Director-General.[3] The chair of the BBC also acts as the corporation's most senior representative to Parliament and the government, including the devolved administrations.[4]
| Chair of the BBC | |
|---|---|
| BBC Board BBC | |
| Member of | BBC Board |
| Appointer | Monarch, on the advice of the Secretary of State. |
| Term length | Four years, renewable once |
| Constituting instrument | Royal charter |
| First holder | Jack Pease, 1st Baron Gainford |
| Salary | £160,000 |
The chair is formally appointed by the King-in-Council, on the advice of the Secretary of State for a four-year term.[3] The current chairman, Dr Samir Shah, succeeded chairwoman Dame Elan Closs Stephens on 4 March 2024.[5]
List of chairmen
- Status
| Portrait | Name (Birth–Death) |
Term of office | Honour(s) | Prime Minister | Monarch | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
British Broadcasting Company |
George V.jpg) r. 1910–1936 | |||||
 |
Jack Pease, 1st Baron Gainford (1860–1943) |
18 December 1922 | 31 December 1926 | David Lloyd George | ||
| Bonar Law | ||||||
| Stanley Baldwin | ||||||
| Ramsay MacDonald | ||||||
| Stanley Baldwin | ||||||
BBC Board of Governors | ||||||
 |
George Villiers, 6th Earl of Clarendon (1877–1955) |
1 January 1927 | 1930 | Stanley Baldwin | ||
| Ramsay MacDonald | ||||||
 |
John Henry Whitley (1866–1935) |
1930 | 3 February 1935 (Died in Office) |
|||
 |
William Bridgeman, 1st Viscount Bridgeman (1864–1935) |
1935 | 14 August 1935 (Died in Office) |
|||
| Stanley Baldwin | ||||||
,_Chairman_of_the_BBC;_City_of_London_Corporation.jpg) |
Ronald Collet Norman (1873–1963) |
1935 | 1939 | |||
| Neville Chamberlain | Edward VIII.jpg) r. 1936 | |||||
George VI.jpg) r. 1936–1952 | ||||||
 |
Allan Powell (1876–1948) |
1939 | 1946 | |||
| Winston Churchill | ||||||
| Clement Attlee | ||||||
|
Philip Inman, 1st Baron Inman (1892–1979) |
1947 | 1947 | |||
 |
Ernest Simon, 1st Baron Simon of Wythenshawe (1879–1960) |
1947 | 1952 | |||
| Winston Churchill | Elizabeth II_(cropped)_(3-to-4_aspect_ratio).jpg) r. 1952–2022 | |||||
 |
Alexander Cadogan (1884–1968) |
1952 | 1957 | |||
| Anthony Eden | ||||||
| Harold Macmillan | ||||||
|
Arthur fforde (1900–1985) |
1957 | 1964 | |||
| Alec Douglas-Home | ||||||
 |
Norman Brook, 1st Baron Normanbrook (1902–1967) |
1964 | 15 June 1967 (Died in Office) |
Harold Wilson | ||
|
Charles Hill, Baron Hill of Luton (1904–1989) |
1967 | 1972 | |||
| Edward Heath | ||||||
 |
Michael Swann (1920–1990) |
1973 | 1980 | Baron Swann for Life in 1981 | ||
| Harold Wilson | ||||||
| James Callaghan | ||||||
| Margaret Thatcher | ||||||
|
George Howard (1920–1984) |
1980 | 1983 | Baron Howard of Henderskelfe for Life in 1981 | ||
|
Stuart Young (1934–1986) |
1983 | 29 August 1986 (Died in Office) |
|||
|
Marmaduke Hussey (1923–2006) |
1986 | 1996 | Baron Hussey of North Bradley for Life in 1996 | ||
| John Major | ||||||
|
Christopher Bland (1938–2017) |
1 April 1996 | 30 September 2001 | |||
| Tony Blair | ||||||
 |
Gavyn Davies (1950–) |
1 October 2001 | 28 January 2004 | |||
 |
Richard Ryder, Baron Ryder of Wensum (1949–) |
28 January 2004 | 17 May 2004 | |||
 |
Michael Grade (1943–) |
17 May 2004 | 28 November 2006 | Baron Grade of Yarmouth for Life in 2011 | ||
|
Anthony Salz (1950–) |
28 November 2006 | 31 December 2006 | Knighted in 2013 | ||
BBC Trust | ||||||
|
Chitra Bharucha (1945–) |
1 January 2007 | 30 April 2007 | Tony Blair | ||
|
Sir Michael Lyons (1949–) |
1 May 2007 | 30 April 2011 | |||
| Gordon Brown | ||||||
| David Cameron | ||||||
 |
Chris Patten, Baron Patten of Barnes (1944–) |
1 May 2011 | 6 May 2014 | |||
 |
Diane Coyle (1961–) |
6 May 2014 | 8 October 2014 | |||
 |
Rona Fairhead (1961–) |
9 October 2014 | 2 April 2017 | Baroness Fairhead for Life in 2017 | ||
| Theresa May | ||||||
BBC Board | ||||||
|
Sir David Clementi (1949–) |
16 February 2017[6][7] | 15 February 2021[7] | Knighted in 2004 | Theresa May | |
| Boris Johnson | ||||||
|
Richard Sharp (1956–) |
16 February 2021[8] | 27 June 2023[9][10] | |||
| Liz Truss | ||||||
Charles III.jpg) r. 2022–present | ||||||
| Rishi Sunak | ||||||
|
Dame Elan Closs Stephens (1948–) |
27 June 2023 | 4 March 2024 | Knighted as a Dame in 2019 | ||
|
Dr Samir Shah (1952–) |
4 March 2024 | Incumbent | |||
| Sir Keir Starmer | ||||||
