Tony Hall Stepping Down as BBC Director-General

Tony Hall is stepping down as the director-general of the BBC this summer after seven years in the role.

“Tony Hall is an inspirational creative leader, within the U.K. and around the globe, and the BBC has been lucky to have him as our director-general for the last seven years,” said BBC Chairman David Clementi. “Tony has led the BBC with integrity and a passion for our values that is obvious to everyone who meets him. His reforms have shaped the BBC for the future and he will leave the BBC in the summer with our gratitude and our very best wishes.”

The BBC Board will begin searching for a successor in the next few weeks, Clementi said.

“It’s been such a hard decision for me,” Hall said in a memo to BBC employees. “If I followed my heart I would genuinely never want to leave. However, I believe that an important part of leadership is putting the interests of the organization first. The BBC has an 11-year Charter—our mission is secure until 2027. But we also have a mid-term review process for the spring of 2022. As I said last week, we have to develop our ideas for both. And it must be right that the BBC has one person to lead it through both stages.”