Online Bookies Open Bets for New BBC Head

As the Jimmy Savile child abuse scandal continues to get worse, the BBC are suffering from more criticism provoking chairman, Lord Patten, to respond that it is not an “agent of government.”

Lord Patten told Culture Secretary Maria Miller, that the BBC should be given the space to deal with the matter, which he labelled “the worst crisis the BBC has ever known”, without government interference.

There have also been calls for Director General George Entwistle to leave the corporation which has led to online bookies opening betting markets on who his successor may be.

Favourite is Ed Richards with odds of 11/10 followed by Caroline Thomson and Tim Davey with odds of 11/4.

 

There are also some more interesting choices such as Jeremy Paxman at 25-/1 and outsider Jonathan Ross at 500/1.

The row between MPs and the BBC grew worse this week when Miller wrote to Lord Pattern expressing concerns over the way it has responded to the Savile revelations.

Patten further angered MPs by suggesting in his response that Miller was questioning the BBC’s independence.

He caused further concern that the BBC will do its best to avoid an external investigation by saying that “the BBC is independent, it is answerable to licence fee payers.”