News about David Dimbleby

The Conservatives have turned down a BBC call for richer households to pay more for TV licences. As he laid out his proposals for the corporation's future, Tim Davie, the BBC's director general, said he was open to the possibility of'reform' the licence fee and making it more'more progressive'. He also hinted at future shifts in the television license's payment system, saying it must be 'fair and proportionate'. However, a Tory source told the Telegraph that the suggestion was not "not something a Conservative government could countenance." Mr Davie's remarks seemed to open up the possibility of a means-tested payment system for the license fee, where the wealthy pay more than the poor. People on welfare may have to make compromises.

Tim Davie says he is able to'reform' the licence fee and making it more 'ethical,' as he laid out his corporate's future. The BBC's director general also hinted at future shifts in the broadcaster's regulatory regime, saying that it must be 'fair and proportionate.' His remarks seem to open the possibility of a means-tested payment system for the licence fee, where the wealthy pay more than the poor. People on welfare could face a compromise.

HARDCASTLE: The eyebrows of ROYAL eyebrows are slanted at Queen Camilla's decision to take a week off in the midst of the company's worst labour shortage in history. With both the King and the Princess of Wales hors de combat, there are simply not enough members of the first team to adequately cover the slew of engagements that necessitate a royal appearance. Camilla and William's mischief makers seem to have fallen out, culminating from his no-show at King Constantine's memorial in Windsor, and implying she went on vacation. The sudden absence of working royals has discredited Andrew Andrew's chances of some sort of recovery by assisting William and Princess Anne in filling the voids. However, one courtier predicts the return of Andrew: he has two chances.' There are none and none at all.'

EPHRAIM HARDCASTLE: Prince Andrew performed a version of musical chairs in Windsor's St George's Chapel for the late King Constantine's memorial service. In the second class, he was supposed to sit next to his ex-wife Sarah. The front row was reserved for Queen Camilla and working royals plus Marina Ogilvy, who was seen in a wheelchair for the first time. The Duke of Kent, who should have been with his sister and niece in the second row, was carried to the second row like a jumbo cuckoo Andrew. Would absent William - who has little time for Andrew (who bagged pole position as the highest in the line of succession present) - have relegated his uncle to his proper place?

EPHRAIM HARDCASTLE: Prince Andrew's papers concerning him are embargoed until 2065, according to biographer Andrew Lownie (pictured). The papers, which were held at The National Archives, contain legal information from the Blair administration regarding Charles and Camilla's marriage at a registry office. This embargo will last at least until King Charles' death. Charlie Falconer, Labour's former Prime Minister, circumvented the 1949 Marriage Act by utilizing the 1998 Human Rights Act.

Following Richard Sharp's resignation, television broadcaster David Dimbleby (pictured) ruled himself out of contention to become the BBC's next chairman on Sunday. Dimbleby, 84, has attempted to reclaim the position twice in the past. I'm now focusing on broadcasting, which has always been my greatest pleasure,' he told Radio 4's Today show. I guess I'll keep doing this. I will not apply,' I said no. If asked to do it, I'd say, 'No, thank you very much, not this time around.' '

EPHRAIM HARDCASTLE: With the knowledge that the Westminster Abbey ceremony is still unclear, final decisions on the processional route are yet to be made. Insiders at BBC are concerned that full rehearsals at the Abbey aren't scheduled to begin until just over a week before the Coronation itself, leaving little time to finalize locations for hundreds of cameras and microphones. According to one BBC source, this was supposed to be a "made for television" performance, but technical staff are relying on hunches and guesswork.' Will it be all right on the night?

The BBC has revealed its presenter team for King Charles' Coronation next month. Kirsty Young, who was at the forefront of covering The Queen's funeral last year, will attend the major broadcasting event on May 6, with Huw Edwards on commentary duties. David Dimbleby, who has reportedly declined to appear because he didn't want to play a diminished role, is one of the few people to be ignored in the news.

After the corporation announced that Kirsty Young and Huw Edwards would lead King Charles' Coronation for the BBC, David Dimbleby turned down the opportunity to host King Charles' Coronation for the BBC, it was announced last night. Dimbleby, who was not included in the BBC's presenting lineup, has been a prominent figure in the broadcaster's political and royal coverage for many years, and he came out of retirement last September to cover the Queen's funeral procession. According to an insider, the veteran skipped covering the King's Coronation for the BBC because he didn't want to be'second fiddle' in the line-up. Rather, Kirsty Young and Huw Edwards will be among the BBC's coverage of King's Coronation. Sophie Raworth, Clare Balding, JJ Chalmers, and Anita Rani will be among the corporation's line-up for the spectacular event in May.

David Dimbleby (left) is not expected to be one of the main presenting line-up leading the BBC's coverage of Charles III's Coronation. Huw Edwards (top right), Kirsty Young (middle right), and Clare Balding (bottom right) are expected to front the broadcaster's coverage on May 6. Mr Dimbleby will not be called out of retirement, as he was for the Queen's funeral last September. The Sunday Times announced that Mr Dimbleby would not be brought out of retirement. He supervised the coverage of the Queen's committingtal service at St George's Chapel in Windsor.

EPHRAIM HARDCASTLE: Is there no love lost between BBC titans Huw Edwards and David Dimbleby? David recalls one election night when a television floor manager told Edwards, 'Move up, David is here.' On a podcast, Dimbleby says, 'He looked tense.' 'I was getting up early in the morning, Huw was coming on, and I was furious because I wasn't able to say good night or good morning at the end.' I just had to be shuffled off.' You can't trust the actors because they want your work,' he says. Why should you trust them?'

During the queen's mourning period, BBC bosses shunted a documentary about King Charles (left, in the documentary) III's importance from broadcasting to iPlayer, fearing disrespecting the monarch's death, according to the show's producer. Born to be the King (top right, then Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall in the documentary), it was supposed to be broadcast on the third day after the Queen's funeral on Thursday, September 8. However, executives at the corporation opted to move the documentary from its television slot to iPlayer on Saturday morning, according to he.

JACK TEAGUE – The extent of his possessions - the 6,000-acre Stowell Park estate in Gloucestershire and the 10,000-acre Forest Estate on the Isle of Jura among them - testified to dexterous financial planning by his ancestors, saving the family from an estimated £88 million in taxes over the decades. However, Sam Vestey, the Queen's confidant and Master of The Horse, who died in 2012 at the age of 79, does not imitate those ancestors. The will, which has just been announced, shows that nearly three-quarters of his £15 million personal fortune was swallowed up by debt, lowering the total amount bequeathed to his five children by less than £4 million. Friends are left wondering where the majority went. The Jura estate was gifted to the boys two years ago,' I'm told, but it could have occurred too soon after Sam's death to ensure that it was exempt from inheritance tax.'

CHRISTOPHER STEVENS: A review of the hoof. Strictly Come Dancing performed a number of dances to favorite TV theme tunes on the Beeb's centennial, from ballet to casualty. However odd they were, the routines portrayed the reality of the BBC's first decades. . . It was entirely on the hoof, aired live, and people presumably made up as they went along. Why The BBC Began (BBC2) painted an amusing portrait of an organisation that had no idea what it was doing half the time.

Henry Dimbleby (inset), the country's first-born chef, confirmed that it is 'definitely a case' for the government to re-introduce British Restaurants to provide affordable and healthy meals. According to him, the government should provide meals to the public using the 'extraordinary' school kitchens. The community kitchen project (pictured left and right) was launched by wartime Food Minister Lord Woolton to improve the nation's health and resilience during WW2.

After returning to cover the Queen's funeral last month, the former host of Question Time, 83, has accused the broadcaster of avoiding topics 'they think their viewers will not like.' Mr Dimbleby spoke at the Henley Literary Festival, discussing topics such as "the power that the palace must modify taxation legislation" and conflicting views on whether the Duchy of Cornwall should be paying capital gains tax. 'All those topics are never touched by the BBC because I suspect their viewers will not be interested in it,' a visceral feeling.' I believe it is inaccurate, and that these items should be thoroughly investigated.

EPHRAIM HARDCASTLE: With Meghan reportedly once lamenting not being paid for undertaking royal tours, what has been her reaction to the jumbo payments from her father-in-law Charles? In her and Harry's last year as 'working' royals, Charles paid £4.5 million to his sons to cover their official duties and lifestyles in taxpayer-funded palaces. Harry's argument to Oprah that Charles cut him off financially after leaving the gilded cage was debunked by the revelation that his father had actually been generous with a payoff.

EPHRAIM HARDCASTLE: When she returns from New York, King Charles may have shielded Liz Truss from an uncomfortable encounter. Clarence House rather than Buckingham Palace would have kept him after his mother acceded to the throne. Prime Minister Winston Churchill had browbeaten her to move to what he described as the monarch's official residence.

STEPHEN GLOVER: The BBC has been chastised over the years, not least from my pen, for being centrally located in several of its preoccupations, and in some cases out of step with much of the country. Let's face it: Auntie often looks at the world through a narrowly Left-wing lens. Emily Maitlis, who has left the BBC, was a stark example of the Corporation's political lennency. So when I heard of the Queen's death, I trembled at the possibility of reporting the Beeb reflected the republican sentiments that I suspect many of the Beeb's journalists secretly held. I must not have shared such tremblings.

JAN MOIR: Everything seemed to be slow motion, but many viewers must have wished it would go on for ever. The eyeballs boiled at a time when monarchy and empire were competing for attention amid the simple sadness of a family's sad goodbye to a much-loved matriarch. However, silence must also be broken if silence is golden. The microphones clicked backwards as the hearse crept into place. 'The ancient architecture of Westminster Abbey is visible from the road,' Huw Edwards (BBC1) said, in case anyone was curious about the huge, grey building lurking center stage.'

David Dimbleby (left) a veteran broadcaster, has come out of retirement to take over BBC coverage of the Queen's service. Dimbleby, 83, takes over from Huw Edwards, 61, who has anchored much of the BBC's coverage since Queen Elizabeth II's death on Thursday 8 September 8th, to Her Majesty's funeral at Westminster Abbey this morning. This is 69 years since Dimbleby's father, Richard Dimbleby (pictured right), gave the Queen's Coronation address in 1953.

The BBC's massive broadcasting operation at Queen's funeral will be fueled by environmentally friendly vegetable oil. The event will be run on Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO), which produces much less carbon dioxide than traditional generator diesel, and generators will produce electricity for the corporation's 213 cameras. In addition, the BBC will save electricity by using energy-saving LED lighting in its London and Windsor studios. For the reporting, which airs from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., cameras that film in Ultra High Definition will be used, so high-quality footage is preserved for archives.

4.1 billion people - more than half of the world's population - are expected to tune in globally. Huw Edwards will lead the BBC's coverage from 8am to 5 p.m. with Fergal Keane in London, while Kirsty Young and David Dimbleby will be in Windsor as part of a team of 30 people providing commentary on BBC television and radio. At 9.30 a.m., ITV's coverage will begin, with Tom Bradby and Julie Etchingham hosting. Mary Nightingale, the Westminster Abbey news anchor, will lead the coverage. Following an early morning broadcast by Kay Burley, Anna Botting and Dermot Murnaghan will host from 9 a.m. on Sky News.

After missing out on the guest list for the Queen's funeral (pictured right: the Queen's coffin while sitting in state at Westminster Hall), Donald Trump (pictured left with the Queen in 2019) is expected to attend a memorial service for the Queen in the United States. According to reports, the former American president, 76, will be invited by the British Government to a vigil in Washington, DC. On Monday, American President Joe Biden and his wife Jill, as well as 500 other world leaders and foreign dignitaries, will attend the Queen's funeral in London. Mr Trump, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, and George W Bush, the four living former US presidents, have reportedly not been invited. It comes as a result of rumors of a lack of space at Westminster Abbey, which is estimated to have a capacity of only around 2,200 people. According to The Telegraph, the former president of the United States had rather been invited to a special service of thanksgiving at Washington's National Cathedral on Wednesday. It's not clear if Mr Trump or the other three former presidents of the United States will attend the Washington event.