Stephen Sackur has hit out at the BBC’s “incredibly dumb” decision to axe one of its flagship programmes.
Last October, the corporation announced its decision to end HARDTalk, along with the loss of 100 news roles at the corporation. The company had been facing increasing financial pressure and had projected its total deficit would increase to £492 million for the 2024/25 financial year at the time.
The politics show, known for its challenging interviews with world leaders, was presented by the veteran broadcaster and had spent nearly three decades on air. During his career, the presenter interviewed Robert Mugabe, Hugo Chavez, Sergei Lavrov, Meles Zenawi, Lula, Nancy Pelosi, Recep Tayep Erdogan, Emmanuel Macron, Imran Khan, Olusegan Abasanjo, and many others.
“I feel really, really cross at incredibly dumb decisions made by management that I fear is not doing the right thing for the BBC,” he told The Guardian. “I have not been impressed with their ability to deal with this in a compassionate, human way.”
Sackur also hit out at BBC director-general Tim Davie, saying he never visited the HARDtalk team during his five-year tenure, despite promises to do so. The Independent has contacted Davie’s representatives for comment.
“I rang him up when he got the job and I said: ‘I just want to say hi and well done.’ And he said: ‘It’s great to talk to you. I appreciate how important HARDtalk is, particularly in terms of our international offer and profile. I look forward to coming down and seeing the team,’ which he never did,” he said.
“He invited me to a gathering of journalists from different parts of the BBC, but otherwise I’ve never spoken or heard from him again. And, since the closure announcement, I’ve not heard a word.”
Sackur said he had hoped to stay at the BBC, however he was handed a three-month redundancy notice.
“I don’t want to leave the BBC, because I still think I’ve got a lot to offer,” he said at the time. “And I don’t want the programme to be closed, but that argument has been definitively lost.”
Viewers were left furious at the time, as the presenter bluntly expressed his thoughts saying it was “depressing news for the BBC and all those who believe in the importance of independent, rigorous deeply researched journalism.”
He continued: “At a time when disinformation and media manipulation are poisoning public discourse, HARDtalk is unique – a long-form interview show with only one mission, to hold to account those who all too often avoid accountability in their own countries.”
