Poor judgment or a ‘safe haven for perverts’: Can the BBC survive Russell Brand?

London: When the BBC, Britain’s public broadcasting behemoth, celebrated a century on air last October, its many champions had hoped a turbulent decade would soon be a thing of the past.

It is just under 11 years since the corporation – beloved for its dramas, comedies and children’s shows – was rocked by the worst scandal in its history, when former star presenter Jimmy Savile was revealed to be a serial child sex offender and rapist.

Accused: BBC presenters Huw Edwards, Russell Brand, Tim Westwood.Credit:

But the BBC has struggled to recover from that scandal. It was one of many institutions that failed to detect a criminal paedophile in its midst, and missed a unique opportunity to call out it out with a series of decisions to block its own journalists from reporting on the issue.

In the years since – under a fiercely critical Conservative government – the broadcaster has continued to be plagued by controversies and poor judgment. And now allegations about the behaviour of comedian Russell Brand on its watch have again shaken the organisation to its core.

The 48-year-old presenter has been accused of rape, sexual assault and emotional abuse by four women during the height of his fame between 2006 and 2013.

Brand has denied the claims, which he described as a “litany of egregious and aggressive attacks” that he “completely refutes”. He has said that his relationships were “absolutely always consensual”. No criminal charges have been laid.

It took rival media outlets to expose Jimmy Savile’s reign of abuse at the BBC.Credit: Getty

BBC director-general Tim Davie ordered a review after the allegations against Brand were aired in a joint investigation by The Times, The Sunday Times and Channel 4’s Dispatches. It will look at complaints made about Brand during his time at the broadcaster and what action was taken. He hopes it will take “weeks not months”.

The BBC holds a unique position in the British consciousness and remains both the model for and the envy of public service broadcasters around the world. It frequently ranks among the institutions Britons are most proud of.

Among the most uncomfortable allegations demanding investigation is that Brand once sent a BBC car to pick up his 16-year-old girlfriend from school and remove her from lessons to go to his flat.

Among claims that the BBC ignored their star’s behaviour is one of the more uncomfortable incidents to be unearthed: audio of Brand joking with Savile in a radio interview about getting together with Brand’s personal assistant, provided she was naked.

Brand’s alleged conduct has highlighted a broader problem for the BBC, which is the perception that management for too long has turned a blind eye to allegations of misbehaving stars who seem to wield much power.

In the past 18 months, new scandals have included historical allegations of sexual misconduct and predatory behaviours against former Radio 1 presenter and DJ Tim Westwood and BBC newsreader Huw Edwards.

Westwood was interviewed under caution by police for a third time in July about five sexual offences alleged to have taken place between 1982 and 2016. An internal BBC review found the corporation should have further investigated a string of sexual assault allegations against the former hip-hop DJ. He has strongly denied the allegations.

Edwards hasn’t appeared on the channel since he was named publicly as the star being investigated following sexual misconduct allegations. The BBC investigation continues after police found no evidence of criminal behaviour over claims he paid a young person for explicit images. Edwards would address the claims at a later date. “Once well enough to do so, he intends to respond to the stories that have been published,” his wife said.

While differing in magnitude and in the content of the allegations, all cases reflect a culture of the behaviour of well-paid stars.

Earlier this year, Conservative Party MP Lee Anderson branded the broadcaster a “safe haven for perverts”. Anderson was roundly criticised for his comments, including by his own party’s leadership in Downing Street.

Liz Kershaw, one of Britain’s longest serving radio DJs, last week wrote in the LondonTelegraph that the BBC management culture allowed Brand, while working on radio, to “indulge in narcissistic and reckless behaviour on the shop floor and to serve up his own brand of childish, self-serving, point-scoring bile on air leaving behind him a trail of ruined careers and shattered lives”.

“I’m pleased that, quite rightly, questions are at last being asked about his conduct and others. Who facilitated it? Who endorsed it? Who indulged him? Who effectively covered up for him?” she wrote.

Away from the scandals, popular presenters are also still given leeway despite strict impartiality restrictions on other staff, as the conclusion of the row in April over former Match of the Day presenter Gary Lineker’s tweets showed. The former England star was stood down over a tweet in which he compared the British government to Nazi Germany. But after huge backlash from his fellow football pundits and commentators, Lineker was allowed back on air.

Soccer panelist Gary Lineker’s tweet sparked a firestorm.Credit: AP

Other crises include a 2021 report which concluded the BBC covered up “deceitful behaviour” by journalist Martin Bashir when he faked bank statements to gain a notorious interview with Princes Diana. In April, chairman Richard Sharp resigned after failing to disclose a potential conflict of interest in his role in securing an £800,000 ($1.5 million) loan for then prime minister Boris Johnson.

Brand had his own shows on BBC 6 Music and Radio 2 between 2006 and 2008, quitting after public outrage over the infamous 2008 “Sachsgate” recordings, where he left lewd messages for the Fawlty Towers actor Andrew Sachs.

Davie, who was at the time the corporation’s newly installed head of audio and music, has questioned whether the BBC could have done more to prevent misogyny and abuse of power when Brand was a presenter.

“There have been deep problems with misogyny and abuse of power,” he said last week. “We have to be utterly vigilant and be un-accepting of it.”

“I do think we’re in a different place, over 15 years. When I listened back, frankly, to some of those broadcasts, I think: that is just completely unacceptable.”

That it has taken rival media outlets to expose first Savile’s reign of abuse, where he had raped and abused vulnerable adults and children on National Health Service and BBC premises while undertaking charity work, has also thrown up questions for the broadcaster.

Many have said that Brand’s behaviour was an “open secret” within the TV industry at the time, where Brand had a string of presenter roles on Channel 4 and BBC radio. Both have now announced “urgent” internal reviews after the allegations.

British Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer said the media outlets involved in Brand’s employment must conduct transparent investigations into whether complaints were made or concerns were raised and what action, if any, was taken. She said the television industry must ensure that people feel safe and “everybody feels able to speak up, no matter how junior, and where leaders never turn a blind eye”.

But those who have aired the allegations say the BBC has either ignored or refused to answer Freedom of Information requests for information about concerns raised by staff who worked with Brand, who was a presenter on Radio 2.

Meirion Jones, a journalist whose investigation into Savile before his death was suppressed by the BBC, warned that there was a “much wider problem” within the media industry. He said he’d been contacted by numerous women who worked for the BBC as well as ITV, Channel 4 and independent media outlets since the allegations about Brand were published.

“One woman contacted me and said that she complained about a powerful person at the BBC who is harassing three women. In the end, the BBC protected that individual and the three women had to leave,” Jones said.

Kershaw, who was sacked from her show earlier this year after 35 years, wrote that one veteran radio DJ had told her that when he brought up Brand’s on-air behaviour, he was told that “the talent gets what the talent wants”.

She said she had personally told at least two director-generals of the senior management style which allowed the incidents to happen but was ignored. “They were not listening. Perhaps they’ll listen now,” she said.

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