Chair of the BBC

Head of British Broadcasting Corporation's board

Chair of the BBC

Incumbent
Elan Closs Stephens
since 27 June 2023

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| The Lord Gainford
Salary| £160,000

The Chair of the BBC, referred to as Chairwoman when the incumbent is female and Chairman when male, 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]

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 chairwoman, Dame Elan Closs Stephens, succeeded Richard Sharp on 27 June 2023.[5]

## List of chairmen[edit]

Status

Denotes Acting Chair

Portrait  | Name
(Birth–Death) | Term of office  | Honour(s)  | Prime Minister  | Monarch

|
|
|
|
|

## Chair of the Board of Governors of the British Broadcasting Company[edit]

| George V

r. 1910–1936
| The Lord Gainford
(1860–1943) | 18 December 1922  | 31 December 1926  |  | David Lloyd George
Bonar Law
Stanley Baldwin
Ramsay MacDonald
Stanley Baldwin

## Chairman of the Board of Governors of the BBC[edit]

| The 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) |
| The Viscount Bridgeman
(1864–1935) | 1935  | 14 August 1935
(Died in Office) |
Stanley Baldwin
| Ronald Collet Norman
(1873–1963) | 1935  | 1939  |
Neville Chamberlain | Edward VIII

r. 1936
George VI

r. 1936–1952
| Allan Powell
(1876–1948) | 1939  | 1946  |
Winston Churchill
Clement Attlee
| The Lord Inman
(1892–1979) | 1947  | 1947  |
| The Lord Simon of Wythenshawe
(1879–1960) | 1947  | 1952  |
Winston Churchill  | Elizabeth II

r. 1952–2022
| Alexander Cadogan
(1884–1968) | 1952  | 1957  |
Anthony Eden
Harold Macmillan
| Arthur fforde
(1900–1985) | 1957  | 1964  |
Alec Douglas-Home
| The Lord Normanbrook
(1902–1967) | 1964  | 15 June 1967
(Died in Office) |  | Harold Wilson
| The Lord 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  |
| The Lord 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

## Chair of the BBC Trust[edit]

| 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
| The Lord 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

## Chair of the BBC Board[edit]

| 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

r. 2022–present
Rishi Sunak
| Dame Elan Closs Stephens
(1949–) | 27 June 2023  | Expected to stay in role for 12 months or less  | Knighted as a Dame in 2019

## See also[edit]

* BBC Charter

## Footnotes[edit]

## References[edit]

1. ^ "The Chairmanship of the BBC" (PDF). Parliament of the United Kingdom. 6 August 2007. p. 6. Retrieved 17 September 2018.
2. ^ "Sir David Clementi". BBC. Archived from the original on 2 November 2018. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
3. ^ a b "Royal Charter for the Continuance of the British Broadcasting Corporation" (PDF). BBC. December 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 July 2017. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
4. ^ "Chair - British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)". Cabinet Office. Government of the United Kingdom. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
5. ^ "Elan Closs Stephens appointed acting chair of BBC". BBC News. 2 June 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
6. ^ Became Chairman of the BBC Board on replacement of the BBC Trust on 3 April 2017
7. ^ a b "David Clementi". About the BBC. Retrieved 19 February 2021.
8. ^ "BBC chairman Richard Sharp resigns after Boris Johnson loan row". BBC News. 28 April 2023. Retrieved 28 April 2023.
9. ^ "Richard Sharp resigns as BBC chairman following row over Boris Johnson loan". Retrieved 28 April 2023.
10. ^ "Richard Sharp". About the BBC. Retrieved 19 February 2021.

## External links[edit]

* BBC Chairmen

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