BBC

Former BBC politics presenter David Dimbleby has rated Boris Johnson’s government the lowest of the low. Dimbleby, who covered every general election for the broadcaster between 1979 and 2017 as well as hosting the EU referendum coverage, said it had been the worst administration he had witnessed since he was born in 1938. Asked by Krishnan […]

Former UKIP leader Gerard Batten has been mocked after claiming that Dawn French’s Vicar of Dibley character symbolises “satanism”. In a call to “defund the BBC”, the short-lived UKIP leader was branded an “idiot” for his musings on the popular comedy show. He tweeted: “Please retweet this. Dawn French, the BBC’s Vicar of Dibley wears […]

Foreign Office minister James Cleverly has insisted that Boris Johnson has delivered his “oven-ready” Brexit deal, and that the UK still “holds all the cards” in talks with the EU. Cleverly appeared on BBC Breakfast amid questions over whether Brexiteers were right with their predictions that it would be the “easiest deal in history” and that the […]

Ivor Gaber on a new book which lays bare the threats facing the BBC, and why we should all care. The title of the book says it all… The War Against the BBC: how an unprecedented combination of hostile forces is destroying Britain’s greatest cultural institution….And why you should care. And the two authors know what […]

TIM WALKER on the latest manoeuvrings for the job of BBC chair. Plus, the return of Michael Gove’s mystery leaker. Mandrake hears that the BBC plans to announce its new chair before Christmas and it looks as if Richard Sharp – a Tory donor who was once Rishi Sunak‘s boss at Goldman Sachs – is a shoo-in. More […]

A Labour MP has been left in “shock” following claims by a Tory MP that his party does not have an issue with racism. Labour’s Clive Lewis and Conservative MP Andrew Mitchell exchanged barbs over how each party has reacted to internal issues of racism and ethnic and religious discrimination. The row comes on the back of […]

Tim Walker on his Trump-inspired tiff with the BBC’s man in Washington. Tempers among BBC journalists were clearly frayed as their rolling coverage of the American election was unfavourably compared to CNN, which robustly called out Donald Trump‘s lies. “What the f*** are you talking about, Tim?” the BBC’s North America editor Jon Sopel, pictured, responded when I suggested […]

Andrew Neil has said he is enjoying his “new-found freedom” since leaving the BBC and used his final appearance on the news channel to criticise the SNP. Neil made the most of his presence on Politics Live to blast the SNP on the issue of poverty in Scotland. The now ex-BBC broadcaster claimed that people being “left behind” in parts […]

One of Boris Johnson’s ministers was left red-faced after he failed to say how many people had received a coronavirus test on Wednesday during an appearance on BBC Breakfast. Buckland, the minister for justice, suggested over quarter of a million people had been tested on Wednesday but had to quickly retract that statement when he […]

Robert Jenrick has joined fellow cabinet ministers in creating confusion about the rules which will apply when England’s second national lockdown begins on Thursday. Communities Secretary Jenrick suggested that an entire household could meet up with a friend, before then contradicting himself. The official guidance states that people in England can exercise or visit outdoor public […]

Actor and television presenter Danny Dyer has been praised for his latest criticism of the Tories over their handling of the coronavirus pandemic. Dyer, whose previously went viral for calling David Cameron a “tw*t over Brexit, appeared on BBC Breakfast to this time slam Boris Johnson’s government. The Eastenders star used his appearance to call for fewer Etonians […]