Montague reveals she was ‘incandescent with rage’ over pay gap with Today stars

BBC Radio 4 presenter Sarah Montague has said she was “incandescent with rage” and “felt a sap” when she learned she was paid far less than her Today programme co-stars. The broadcaster has now left

Today to become the lead presenter of the station’s World at

One, and she wrote in a national newspaper that she negotiated a better salary by using “the pay of previous presenters as a guide”. Montague swapped her Today role with Martha Kearney, who was revealed last year to be earning between £200,000 and £249,999. Writing in the newspaper, Montague said she “hadn’t clocked just how professionally damaging it would feel” to know she was earning less than her Today colleagues. Montague, who was a key member of the hosting team for 17 years, revealed she was paid £133,000, and that it “was a very good wage for a job that I loved”.

Salaries revealed by the BBC in July last year showed Today programme host John Humphrys was earning £600,000 to £649,000 for the morning news programme.

Nick Robinson is on £250,000 to £299,000, Mishal Husain is in the £200,000 to £249,000 pay bracket, and Justin Webb earned between £150,000 and £199,999.

After initially thinking that she might feel good for “taking less of the licence fee than others”, Montague said she “felt a sap” for “subsidising other people’s lifestyles”.

She wrote that even with her work on BBC World’s Hardtalk and other Radio 4 programmes, she did not reach the minimum £150,000 level to be included on the BBC’s pay report.