Didn’t they do well! Generation Game ruse that keeps new hosts Mel and Sue’s pay top secret
THE BBC is exploiting a loophole in regulations to keep secret from licence fee-payers the salaries of the stars of a new version of The Generation Game.
The Corporation will announce today that the much-loved family entertainment show is being revived with Mel Giedroyc and Sue Perkins as presenters.
But although the former stars of the Great British Bake Off will enjoy a bumper pay day as successors to the show’s former host Bruce Forsyth, the amounts will not be disclosed to the public – despite the Government ordering the BBC to reveal all salaries of £150,000 or more.
The show is being made by a new commercial subsidiary of the Corporation, BBC Studios, which is exempt from the rule.
The return of The Generation Game is just one of a series of highprofile projects being lined up for Mel and Sue after they agreed not to follow the Bake Off to Channel 4. The secrecy surrounding their salaries will further undermine claims by Ministers and the BBC that a list revealed last week heralded a new age of transparency.
The list of 96 stars and presenters who earned more than £150,000 only included those payments which came wholly from the licence fee.
It did not include salaries paid via independent production companies or via its commercial arm BBC Worldwide, which is responsible for Top Gear. Matt LeBlanc, who hosts the motoring programme, is believed to have received a six-figure sum.
Ms Giedroyc did appear on the list published last week, with earnings of between £150,000 and £199,000. But it is believed those payments were for her co-hosting duties on the Eurovision Song Contest and the much-maligned talent show Let It Shine with Gary Barlow. It is understood they did not include her very sizeable earnings from the Bake Off, which will have been paid through Love Productions, the company which makes the highly popular programme.
The name of Giedroyc’s co-host Sue Perkins did not appear on the list. She is also paid for Bake Off through Love Productions.
Some of the Corporation’s bestknown faces, including Mary Berry, Sir David Attenborough, David Dimbleby and the stars of Call The Midwife and Sherlock were all missing from the list.
The new version of The Generation Game will be given an initial run of four episodes. A television insider last night estimated that Mel and Sue could each receive in the region of £120,000 for the short run. However, should the show prove to be a success, it is very likely to be commissioned for a full series of far more episodes in a Saturday night prime-time slot on BBC1, bringing a far larger salary for the two stars.
Sources believe next year’s list could be even less transparent following the decision to turn BBC Studios into a commercial subsidiary in April this year.
It is expected that as many as 35 star names on the current list could be missing when it is published again. They include Claudia Winkleman, who earns between £450,000 and £499,000 co-hosting Strictly Come Dancing, One Show presenter Alex Jones, who earns between £400,000 and £449,000, and some of the stars of EastEnders, Casualty and Holby City.
They would only appear on the list if they earned £150,000 or more for other programmes funded directly by the licence fee. Strictly Come Dancing is among the programmes for which stars’ salaries have been disclosed but reportedly will be exempt next time.
The BBC hopes its announcement that The Generation Game is to return with two women at the helm will draw a line under a week which saw a wave of negative headlines. But confirmation – buried in a press release – that the show will be produced by BBC Studios will only raise fresh questions about the Corporation’s commitment to transparency.
The new show will be similar in tone and theme to the original, which remains one of the BBC’s most popular ever shows.
Teams will compete in a series of tasks and challenges in a bid to get a seat in front of the show’s iconic conveyer belt of prizes.
One of the big differences this time around is that a panel of celeb-
Next year’s list could be even less transparent
‘If it’s public money, we have a right to know’
rity judges will provide the scores for the couples.
The BBC hopes to replicate at least some of the success of The Generation Game in its heyday. It was hosted first by Bruce Forsyth and later by Larry Grayson, and the show regularly attracted more than 20million viewers.
The show’s return raises the possibility of the revival of the classic BBC1 Saturday night schedule remembered fondly by many, in which Doctor Who was followed by The Generation Game. In April, BBC Studios – which makes programmes including Strictly Come Dancing, Doctor Who and Stargazing – became an independent commercial business which is free to make shows for other broadcasters. A spokesman for the BBC last night confirmed that salaries paid by BBC Studios would not have to be disclosed.
She said: ‘As BBC Studios is now a fully commercial subsidiary, having to compete alongside independent production companies for work with the BBC and other broadcasters, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport agreed that this information should not be disclosable in future years.’
John Whittingdale, the former Culture Secretary who introduced the new law forcing the BBC to declare stars’ pay, said last night: ‘If it is public money being used to commission a programme then the public should have a right to know how and where that money is spent.’