BBC Director General resigns after damning radio interview

“It was not brought to my attention…” BBC director general George Entwistle admits he was not across child sex abuse scandal story. After just eight weeks in the job, George Entwistle has resigned as director general of the BBC in the wake of a tv broadcast which wrongly implicated ex-senior Tory Lord McAlpine in a child sex abuse scandal.

The resignation comes in the wake of the Jimmy Saville sex abuse scandal, which began before Entwistle was appointed, but has not been handled well under his watch.

In a probing interview on BBC Radio’s Today program, presenter John Humphrys grilled his boss over what he did and didn’t know about the latest scandal.

Humphreys: “…and you didn’t ask any questions during the course of the week?”

Entwhistle: “No John I didn’t.”

Humphreys: “Do you no think that you should have?”

Entwhistle: “Um (pause)… I… I… I… ah… the number of things that are going on at the BBC mean that when something is referred to me and brought to my attention I engage with it.”

Humphreys: “So there’s no natural curiosity, you wait for somebody to come along and say excuse me director general this is happening and you may be interested in it, you don’t read the newspapers and listen to the output of the BBC…   You should go shouldn’t you?”

Click here to listen to the full interview.

On his handling of the Jimmy Saville scandal Entwhistle said: “I am doing everything I can, I believe I am doing the right things. I know there are times when I was thought to be a bit slow over Savile. I could have been a bit quicker to move to announcing the independent inquiries by a few days I’ve admitted that. But the truth is that I’m doing the right things to put this stuff straight.”

Shortly after attempting to defend himself and pass the responsibility down the line, Entwhistle resigned.

Entwistle started his career at the BBC as a journalism trainee in 1989. He was appointed director general on 17 September this year.

Tim Davie has been appointed acting director general until the BBC Trust decides whether to begin a new search for a replacement or to take other action.