Veteran broadcaster David Dimbleby has voiced profound concern over the BBC’s “crazy” decision to drastically cut staff from its dedicated events broadcast team, a move he fears will undermine coverage of significant national occasions.
The corporation recently revealed plans to reduce the unit responsible for royal events, state funerals, and the solemn Remembrance Sunday service at the Cenotaph.
Mr Dimbleby, 87, who has personally fronted more than 30 Cenotaph services throughout his illustrious career, underscored the critical importance of the BBC’s role in these broadcasts.
He told Newsnight: “What worries me is the BBC closing down the events department, which I’ve worked with for years, which covers state occasions – Trooping the Colour, royal jubilees – and is a very small unit devoted to doing that, and it’s a difficult job.”
He added: “Apparently, suddenly, some bureaucrat has said ‘oh, we don’t need that’, and I think that’s crazy.”
The former Question Time host elaborated on the extensive preparation required for such events, highlighting the meticulous work undertaken by the team. “The work that goes on before that thing hits the air is done by a dedicated team who have to talk to all the detachments that are going to march past the Cenotaph. It takes three months to prepare for that,” he explained.
He continued, citing other examples: “They go into Westminster Abbey, it takes a month to prepare. You deal with the Houses of Parliament for the state opening. It takes a long time. You have to have a group that can negotiate these things, you don’t just go in and stick up a camera and say ‘oh well, we’ll do a programme’, it is not like that. The BBC should know that.”
Mr Dimbleby noted that the current BBC events broadcasting team is a “very small dedicated unit,” which is reportedly set to be reduced to just one person supported by freelancers.
He challenged the viability of this approach, stating: “I went to South Africa to do (Nelson) Mandela’s funeral and inauguration. Those were massive operations which took weeks to organise. You can’t just do it with freelancers – freelancers are good, but they don’t have the continued involvement, which is what you need to get these things right.”
He concluded by emphasising the unique value of the BBC’s coverage of national events: “The peaks of the BBC are the things that other people don’t or can’t do or want to do. Those are the things you should guard above all else.”
Mr Dimbleby began his career with the BBC six decades ago. His father, Richard, served as the BBC’s first war correspondent before becoming a leading commentator, while his brother, Jonathan, hosted the political debate show Any Questions? for 32 years.
