Matt Brittin
Director-general of the BBC, previously a Google executive.
Notable Quotes
"The scale of savings requires tough choices, careful work and won't all be ready at once."View Story →
"We can and should be doing as much as possible on [enforcing] licence fee collection under the current model, but it's yesterday's model, it's a busted flush, it's no longer fit for purpose, and that's why we need to make the case for the BBC and a shift of the licence fee model."View Story →
"I think that's one of the great things about the 100-year history of the BBC, we can do that, and we can creatively renew content and shows that people love, and we'll be working hard on that right now."View Story →
"the licence fee system itself is a 'busted flush'"View Story →
"a moment of real jeopardy, not just for the BBC but for public service broadcasting and the UK as a whole"View Story →
"On the financial side, I knew that cuts had been announced and that savings had been announced, but I hadn't really understood the severity."View Story →
"You've got very loud critics, many of whom are the commercial rivals of the corporation and you've got political pressure on everything that you do journalistically."View Story →
"We moved to dismiss the case on the grounds of jurisdiction in that nobody in the US actually saw the show with the bad edits, and it was a bad edit, and he won the election, and he's got richer."View Story →
"the scale of savings requires tough choices"View Story →
"We can't guarantee any programme or channel forever."View Story →
"The tight financial situation means that we're having to look at some of those decisions a bit sooner than we might like."View Story →
"If most of an audience is getting things on demand, we have to look at the value and the cost of all of those different services."View Story →
"We want to experiment with this technology and understand what it can and can't do, but I'm here because I believe in human creativity."View Story →
"I think the BBC and our apps and services should be the antidote to the algorithm."View Story →
Related Stories
Some BBC channels and radio stations may well have to close, director general says
The BBC's financial situation "may well mean" some channels and stations close, Matt Brittin says.
September 25, 2026BBC drops Drag Race UK after eight series
Future series will no longer be broadcast on BBC Three as the show moves to a streaming platform owned by its production company.
September 9, 2026BBC director-general says he was not aware of 'severity' of cuts needed
Matt Brittin succeeded Tim Davie as boss of the BBC in May.
August 27, 2026BBC 'working hard' on future of Doctor Who, new BBC director general says
The sci-fi series currently faces an uncertain future after its annual Christmas special was axed for the second year in a row.
July 14, 2026BBC's serious challenges laid bare in annual report
The BBC issues a call to arms for a new funding model to replace the licence fee, media editor Katie Razzall says.
July 14, 2026TV licence fee is 'yesterday's model', new BBC director general says
Matt Brittin gives his views on the corporation's future, six weeks after taking over the BBC.
July 8, 2026BBC announces 550 job cuts as first part of £500m savings plan
In an email to staff, the corporation laid out proposals for the initial 200 job losses in the news division.
June 17, 2026