BBC Appoints Acting Chair Following Resignation of Richard Sharp

variety.com:

K.J. Yossman The BBC has appointed an acting chair following the ousting of Richard Sharp in April. Elan Closs Stephens has been appointed in the role by the U.K.’s culture secretary Lucy Frazer She will take over from Sharp once he steps down on June 27.

Closs Stephens has been a non-executive director of the board since 2017. Before that she was the BBC Trust’s trustee for Wales and has also been chair of the commercial holdings board for BBC Studios, chair of Welsh broadcaster SC4 and is currently Aberystwyth University’s Pro-Chancellor and Professor Emerita in Communications and Creative Industries.

She will remain acting chair of the BBC until a new, permanent chair is found following a government search and application process. “It’s a huge honor to be appointed by the secretary of state as acting chair and I am grateful to my fellow board members for putting their trust in me,” said Closs Stephens. “As a board, we will champion the licence fee payer across all of the U.K.; ensure the BBC is a vital partner for the U.K.

creative industries; maintain trust and drive change to make the BBC fit for a fast changing media landscape. There is much work to be done.” Sharp resigned in April after a parliamentary inquiry found he had breached rules for public appointments when he failed to disclose his ties to then Prime Minister Boris Johnson during the application process.