Alan Yentob, a BBC executive and documentary maker, passed away at the age of 78 over the weekend in tribute to former Top Gear host Jeremy Clarkson.
Jeremy Clarkson has paid tribute to former BBC boss, Alan Yentob, despite accusing the documentary maker of ‘ending his career’. The long-serving BBC arts broadcaster, who was also the former controller of BBC One and Two, died aged 78 at the weekend, and his survived by his wife, Philippa, and the couple’s children, Jacob and Bella.
Yentob famously sacked Clarkson, 65, from Top Gear following a bout of bad behaviour from the Clarkson’s Farm star, which saw the petrolhead punch the show’s then producer Oisin Tymon, leaving him with a bloodied lip. However, despite the drama, Clarkson praised Yentob for being a “great man” as he recounted how they dined together just days after his controversial exit from the BBC.
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Before leaving the Beeb, Alan Yentob, the man who called to end my career at Top Gear, he hinted to X and said that it wasn’t as it appeared. However, he was aware of what was actually happening, and we had dinner two days later. a great man. adored and comprehended television. My devotion to Philippa.
Director-general of the BBC, Tony Hall, made the announcement in 2015 that Jeremy’s contract had expired immediately, effectively removing him from Top Gear. Yentob reportedly backed it at the time.
The announcement came after an internal investigation in to what the BBC labelled as a “fracas” between the presenter and a producer on the show, Oisin Tymon.
Initially, Clarkson was suspended by the BBC after a late night row at the Simonstone Hall hotel in North Yorkshire, where the programme team had travelled for a location shoot.
According to reports, Clarkson and Tymon “lost it” because there was no food left over after a long day of Top Gear filming.
The Grand Tour star, however, was later identified as having “an unprovoked physical and verbal attack” on the producer, which left him “swelled and bleeding his lip”
Yentob, the presenter’s former boss, started out as a trainee at the World Service in 1968 and rose up the ranks to become the BBC One and BBC Two’s controller, television director, and head of music and art.
The father-of-two’s wife, Philippa Walker, said: “For Jacob, Bella, and I every day with Alan held the promise of something unexpected. He and I both had exciting lives.
He had a curiosity, a funny, a late-night, and a creative soul throughout his entire body. He was a profoundly moral and kind man, but more than that, he was. A mile-long trail of love is left in his wake.
BBC Director-General Tim Davie also paid tribute, praising Alan Yentob for his contributions to British broadcasting and the arts. He was a creative force and cultural visionary who helped shape decades of BBC and other programming while also having a passion for telling stories and providing public service that left a lasting legacy.
“Alan has fought for almost 60 years for originality, risk-taking, and artistic ambition.” His influence is woven into the fabric of British cultural life from Arena to Imagine, from commissioning groundbreaking drama to providing a platform for emerging voices.
Source: Mirror
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