Farr considers position as Dyke revamps BBC

Sue Farr, the BBC’s head of public service marketing, is believed to be ready to quit the corporation in the wake of director general Greg Dyke’s strategic review.

Farr, who is also head of broadcast marketing, will decide whether she has a future at the BBC within the next week, after she was passed over for the top marketing position which has been handed to Matthew Bannister. She told Media Week she was still “considering her position”.

Bannister, a former director of radio and director of BBC Production, has been given board level responsibility for marketing as part of new directorate encompassing communications and public relations.

Farr had been widely tipped for the new role having been instrumental in building the corporation’s marketing team and weaving professional marketing techniques into its culture.

Bannister confirmed the possibility of redundancies in marketing services in line with Dyke’s desire to channel more money into programming.

He also said the BBC’s existing media and creative agency accounts held by New PHD and Leagas Delaney could be reviewed.

Bannister has indicated he wishes to find roles for senior marketing staff including Farr and Jane Frost, director of corporate marketing.

This article was first published on Media Week