Outgoing BBC boss Tim Davie yesterday attacked ‘enemies’ of the corporation for trying to ‘weaponise’ its failures – but admitted ‘we have made mistakes that have cost us’.
The director-general, who will stay in his post until a successor is found, said it had been a ‘tough few days’ since he announced his resignation alongside Deborah Turness, the chief executive of BBC News, on Sunday.
Mr Davie described the situation as ‘stressful’ and ‘difficult’ at the corporation after an internal report alleged ‘serious and systemic’ bias in its coverage.
In his first meeting with staff since his shock resignation, he failed to directly address the potential $1billion lawsuit threatened by Donald Trump after the BBC apologised for doctoring footage of the US President in a Panorama documentary.
He instead said the broadcaster would ‘thrive’ and would continue to ‘fight for our journalism’.
Mr Davie also launched an attack on the BBC’s ‘enemies’ who he claimed ‘weaponise’ its editorial failings.
He acknowledged that mistakes had cost the broadcaster, before telling staff at Broadcasting House in London: ‘We will thrive. And this narrative will not just be given by our enemies. It’s our narrative. We own things.’
Mr Davie said the BBC was a ‘unique and precious organisation’, adding: ‘I think we’ve got to fight for our journalism. I’m really proud of our work and the amazing work locally, globally, that we’re doing is utterly precious.
Pictured: Outgoing BBC Director-General Tim Davie walks outside the BBC headquarters in London, Britain, 11 November 2025
Deborah Turness, former head of BBC News, speaks to media outside Broadcasting House on November 10, 2025 in London after her shock resignation
‘I’m fiercely proud of this organisation. There are difficult times it goes through, but it just does good work.’ He added: ‘We are the very best of what I think we should be as a society, and that will never change.’
During the staff call, neither Mr Davie nor the BBC chairman’s Samir Shah mentioned Mr Trump’s legal threat. But Mr Davie said he taken the decision to stand down from the £540,000-a-year role as it was a ‘relentless job’ and he wanted his successor to lead the BBC’s charter negotiations, which will decide its future funding model.
He added: ‘Lastly, I think we did make a mistake, and there was an editorial breach, and I think some responsibility had to be taken. So, putting that together, that’s what made my decision.’
No timeline was set for selecting Mr Davie’s replacement, but Mr Shah said the corporation was in ‘succession mode’.
There was ‘disquiet’ among staff during the question and answer session that followed, with some employees disappointed that it was moderated by a member of the BBC’s communications team, not by a journalist.
Katie Razzall, the corporation’s media editor, said: ‘I got the sense that people were frustrated with the answers. At one point the chair said it was ‘slightly disrespectful’ to ask whether the board upholds the BBC’s values and I sensed an eye-roll from some people at that.’
The Daily Mail understands that there were several questions about Sir Robbie Gibb, a former senior editor at the BBC who also worked as director of communications for Theresa May.
There have been calls for Sir Robbie’s removal from the BBC’s board after he was blamed for Mr Davie’s downfall.
Pictured: General view of Broadcasting House, the BBC headquarters in central London
Mr Shah told staff that the suggestion that senior executives had been the victim of a coup was ‘fanciful’ and he dismissed ‘conspiracy theories’.
Mr Shah said board members ‘have different points of view’, and added: ‘I wouldn’t want a board that’s guilty of groupthink, but the opposite of groupthink is different points of view. That makes the job of the chair challenging to try and organise and get consensus, but it’s important that people have a diversity of opinion on the board.’
A friend of Sir Robbie’s said any suggestion he wanted Mr Davie to resign as director-general was ‘complete nonsense’.
