TV exec Samir Shah appointed chair of UK's BBC

By Paul Sandle

LONDON (Reuters) -British television executive Samir Shah has been chosen as the government's preferred candidate to chair the BBC, culture minister Lucy Frazer said on Wednesday.

Shah, 71, is the chief executive of production company Juniper TV and previously worked at the BBC and London Weekend Television, a franchise in the ITV commercial network.

"Shah has a wealth of experience to bring to the position of BBC Chair," Frazer said in a post on X.

"He has a clear ambition to see the BBC succeed in a rapidly changing media landscape, and I have no doubt he will provide the support and scrutiny that the BBC needs to meet the challenges of the future."

The BBC is funded by a licence fee paid by TV-watching households and is politically independent, but its chair is appointed by the government.

Shah, who was born in India and has worked in broadcasting for over four decades, will be questioned by a parliamentary committee of lawmakers before he is formally appointed.

"The BBC has a great place in British life and a unique duty to reach a wide audience right across the country and I will do all I can to ensure it fulfils this in an increasingly competitive market," he said.

Previous chair Richard Sharp resigned in April after he failed to disclose he had played a role in securing a $1 million loan for the then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

"We welcome the announcement that Samir Shah has been selected as the government’s preferred candidate to take up the role of BBC Chair and look forward to him joining the Board once the formal process has been completed," a BBC spokesperson said.

BBC board member Elan Closs Stephens became the acting chair of the broadcaster following Sharp's resignation.

(Reporting by Paul Sandle, Muvija M and Kylie MacLellan; editing by Sarah Young and Bill Berkrot)