Yorkshireman to take helm at BBC

He will take over from Mark Thompson in the autumn on a salary of £450,000.

Speculation had been mounting that a decision would be reached swiftly after a final round of interviews on Tuesday, conducted by Lord Patten, the chairman of the BBC Trust.

Mr Entwistle had been director of BBC Vision since last year.

Lord Patten said: “George is a creative leader for a creative organisation.

“His experience of making and delivering great programmes that audiences love – built up through many years of working for the Corporation – will prove invaluable as he and his team work to ensure the BBC remains the greatest broadcaster in the world.”

The pay for the role has been hugely reduced by more than £200,000. Mr Thompson – who has held the role since 2004 – is currently paid £671,000, giving an indication of the general belt-tightening for BBC executives.

Among those interviewed for the role are understood to be Ed Richards, the chief executive of Ofcom who was seen as a frontrunner, and the BBC’s chief operating officer, Caroline Thomson.

Mr Thompson indicated in March that he was stepping down following the Olympics.

Mr Entwistle’s chances were at one stage thought to have diminished in the wake of the much-criticised BBC coverage of the Diamond Jubilee pageant, which came under his responsibility.

He said yesterday: “I’m delighted that the chairman and trustees have decided I’m the right person for the job, and I’m very excited about all that lies ahead.

“I love the BBC and it’s a privilege to be asked to lead it into the next stage of its creative life.”

Mr Entwistle was born in Wakefield, grew up in Yorkshire and attended the independent Silcoates School in Wakefield before studying philosophy and politics at Durham University.

Prior to joining the BBC in 1989 as a broadcast journalism trainee, he spent five years working for Haymarket Magazines.

The father-of-two went on to become an assistant producer on Panorama, working on programmes about such prominent events as the first Gulf War and the fall of Margaret Thatcher.