After sex row sacking, Tony Blackburn is back on BBC
TONY Blackburn was yesterday celebrating a triumphant return to the BBC – eight months after he was sacked following an inquest into sexual abuse at the broadcaster.
The 73-year-old DJ was taken off air in February after director-general Tony Hall ruled that his evidence to the Jimmy Savile inquiry ‘fell short’ of the BBC’s standards.
Blackburn had denied that he was questioned by BBC bosses over allegations he molested a 15-yearold Top of the Pops dancer in 1971. But the BBC insisted he had been interviewed about the claims.
Lord Hall accused the DJ of not being open, while Blackburn claimed he was being used as a ‘scapegoat’. But in an embarrassing climbdown, the BBC yesterday announced that from January the popular DJ will host an hour-long Radio 2 show on Friday evenings and return to local radio.
Blackburn, who had worked at the broadcaster for 49 years until his sacking, said outside his North London home: ‘I do not seek to criticise the BBC for decisions it has made in the past. I have had a difficult year personally, but I’m pleased to be returning to the BBC and can’t wait to get behind the mic again.’
Blackburn was fired just two days before Dame Janet Smith’s inquiry into the BBC’s connection to Savile’s sex crimes was published.
Dame Janet had rejected Blackburn’s evidence, ruling that he had been interviewed and had denied the allegations against him. But many accused the BBC of sacking Blackburn in a bid to distract from the report’s embarrassing findings. At the time, the DJ said: ‘They are destroying my career and reputation because my version of events does not tally with theirs.’
Fellow Radio 2 DJ Paul Gambaccini – who was himself cleared of false sex allegations after a year on police bail – criticised the BBC over its treatment of Blackburn, describing the corporation as the ‘worst employer of all time’. He blamed Lord Hall for driving a rift between management and talent, adding: ‘The wrong Tony was sacked.’
In recent months, Blackburn has appeared on radio stations KMFM in Kent and Absolute Radio. He had prostate surgery in June.
His reinstatement at the BBC was widely celebrated yesterday. Fellow Radio 2 presenter Ken Bruce wrote on Twitter: ‘Delighted for @tonyblackburn!’ Sara Cox, another Radio 2 host, wrote: ‘So happy for @tonyblackburn – back behind the mic where he belongs.’ LBC host Iain Dale wrote: ‘[The BBC] treated him appallingly, so it’s good to see a reconciliation has taken place.’
ITN’s Julian Druker wrote: ‘Tony Blackburn was very much sacked, not suspended by the BBC. Tony Hall now risks looking inconsistent by bringing him back.’
The BBC said it ‘stands by the findings of Dame Janet Smith and the decision it made to take Tony Blackburn off air’, adding: ‘Tony Blackburn for his part stands by his statements to Dame Janet but recognises that the BBC considered a period off air was appropriate.’
‘I have had a difficult year’