The UK Government has confirmed Professor Dame Elan Closs Stephens as the acting chair of the BBC.
Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer made the appointment following consultation with the BBC board, in line with the terms of the BBC’s Royal Charter.
Dame Elan will replace Richard Sharp, who resigned following the publication of the Heppinstall Report on 28 April 2023 found breaches of BBC rules in his relationship with former PM Boris Johnson. He will officially step down on 27 June.
Dame Stephens has been a non-executive director on the BBC Board since July 2017, and prior to that was the Trustee for Wales on the BBC Trust (2010 – 2017). Between 2019 and 2022, she was Chair of the Commercial Holdings Board for BBC Studios. Under the BBC’s Charter an acting chair must be an existing non-executive director on the BBC Board.
Dame Stephens said: “It’s a huge honour 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. As a board, we will champion the licence fee payer across all of the UK; ensure the BBC is a vital partner for the UK 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.”
Dame Stephens is an experienced chair and non-executive, with a distinguished career in broadcasting, the creative industries and academia. She is a former chair of the Welsh-language broadcaster, S4C, and is currently the pro-chancellor and Professor Emerita in Communications and Creative Industries at Aberystwyth University. She is also the Electoral Commissioner for Wales.
Dame Elan will remain in post as acting chair while the UK Government undertakes the process to appoint a new, permanent BBC Chair – this process is expected to take several months.
The BBC board said in a statement: “Elan has been an active and distinguished member of the BBC Board who has brought huge energy and drive to her role as Member for Wales. We are delighted that she is taking up the role as acting chair; she is the ideal choice.”
