Matt Brittain, Google’s former head of Europe, Middle East and Africa, has been appointed as the new director general of the BBC.
Rumors began circulating earlier in the week after a report was released The timeswith Brittain’s appointment officially announced by the public broadcaster on Wednesday. He will start May 18, replacing Tim Davie, who said he would resign after countless editorial missteps in the position — including a particularly explosive Trump spat — in November.
The position of director-general at the BBC is one of the toughest jobs in British media, not only responsible for the company’s 20,000-plus staff but also bearing intense scrutiny from Parliament and the public in an era when the mainstream media struggles to maintain trust and respect. This person is responsible for the UK’s number one media brand, a company spanning film, TV, streaming and BBC News, which has a daily audience of 20 million people. Davy’s total annual salary was more than half a million pounds.
One of the toughest parts of the job is delivering a barrage of criticism in the wake of scandal, something that has plagued the BBC in recent years, most notably: the criminal conviction of former BBC news presenter Hugh Edwards on charges relating to images of child sexual abuse, and allegations of inappropriate behavior against the former. Master Chef Allegations of bullying by star Gregg Wallace on the set of the hit series Strictly Come Dancinglive broadcast of chants of “Death, death to the IDF” from Bob Phelan’s Glastonbury show, and Trump’s edited speech on the BBC panorama A documentary, a BBC documentary in Gaza, found that he had ties to Hamas, and of course the BAFTA-tourette fiasco.
Who is the man who now bears all this responsibility?
Brittain, a Cambridge graduate, joined McKinsey as a consultant outside the university before becoming commercial director at Trinity Mirror, owner of Trinity Mirror. Daily Mirror.
In January 2007, Brittain joined Google. He became Google’s UK managing director in 2009, inheriting the position from Dennis Woodside, and two years later was appointed Google’s vice president for Northern and Central Europe. In December 2014, Google appointed Brittain as head of business and operations for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He is said to have had a good reputation at Google and was viewed as a competent and reliable leader.
The CEO is an accomplished rower, according to his LinkedIn profile, which also states that he is a “gap year student.” Since February 2025, he has been a non-executive member of the Board of Directors of the Company The Guardian. He was previously a non-executive director at British supermarket Sainsbury’s.
“Now, more than ever, we need a thriving BBC that works for everyone in a complex, uncertain and rapidly changing world,” Brittain said on Wednesday. “At its best, it shows us and the world who we are. It is an exceptional and uniquely British asset, with over 100 years of innovation in storytelling, technology and fostering creativity. I am honored and delighted to be asked to serve as Managing Director.”
The new BBC chief went on to say that this was a moment of “real danger, but also real opportunity.” He said the BBC “needs speed and energy to be where the stories are and where the audience is”. “To build on today’s reach, trust and creative strengths, face challenges with courage, and thrive as a public service fit for the future. I can’t wait to get started on this work.”
BBC News noted that Brittain’s appointment draws from his experience in big tech, in a media landscape where the likes of Google-owned YouTube dominate. BBC chief Samir Shah said alongside the announcement that he brings “deep experience of leading a high-level, highly complex organization through transformation… He is an outstanding leader who has the skills to navigate the organization through the many changes taking place in the media market and in audience behaviours.”
Shah continued: “Matt is joining the BBC at a critical time.” “The Government’s review of the Charter is underway, and it is clear that a radical overhaul of the BBC, its funding model and the framework in which it operates. The stakes facing the BBC, and the future of the public broadcasting service, have never been higher. The Board and I believe Matt is the right person to lead the BBC as it fights for a sustainable future in an uncertain world, for the benefit of audiences and the UK.”
Just this month, Davey said at an event that the company needed confident, decisive action and a willingness to take risks amid a “total crisis of confidence” facing major organizations as fake news threatens to upend the status quo.
Davie also described the BBC’s financial situation as “monstrous”. The BBC’s annual report last year cited income of £3.8 billion ($5.1 billion) from TV licenses in the UK — a legal requirement in every household that accesses live TV, which currently costs £174.50 ($234) a month — with 23.8 million remaining in force. BBC Commercial achieved record sales of £2.2 billion ($3 billion) while BBC Studios, its main commercial arm, achieved a fourth consecutive year of net profits of more than £200 million ($269 million).
However, the report also said this is not enough to plug the gap left by the license fee, which generates 30 per cent less income for the BBC now than in 2010, as well as higher costs in the production sector.
It’s a role that has long been described as too much for one person. At the top of Brittain’s to-do list is the appointment of a new director for BBC News, after Deborah Torres stepped down alongside Davie in the wake of Trump’s election.panorama lawsuit.
