Alan Yentob obituary: Creative giant of BBC TV, on screen and off

Published 15 hours ago• 3 minute read

"It's never been the same since."

The folowing year, the newspaper's Sam Knight described him as "Britain's most influential TV executive of the last half-century".

In one episode of Imagine, Yentob explored Charles Saatchi's involvement in championing the Young British Artists, like Sarah Lucas - who used fried eggs in her work to challenge the objectification of the human body

Alan Yentob, pictured wearing a black T-shirt with two fried eggs on it, presenting the arts series imagine — In one episode of Imagine, Yentob explored Charles Saatchi's involvement in championing the Young British Artists, like Sarah Lucas - who used fried eggs in her work to challenge the objectification of the human body

In 2004, Yentob was announced as the corporation's creative director. It was a rather amorphous role that gave him licence to have his say almost everywhere.

It also allowed him room to step back in front of the camera to present a new series, Imagine.

It ran for 20 years, exploring every corner of the world of the arts including encounters with rapper Jay-Z, arts supremo Charles Saatchi, comedian Billy Connolly, and his old friend Mel Brooks.

There was controversy when it was claimed the programme had used shots of him nodding during interviews he had not conducted - creating the false impression he had been present. But a staff investigation reportedly found that no fake "noddies" had ever been broadcast.

His expenses came under scrutiny when he claimed £3,381 for a business class flight from London to New York for filming.

In 2015 a children's charity of which he was chairman - Kids Company - collapsed.

There were grumblings from within BBC News that Yentob tried to influence journalists against running the story and, eventually, he resigned as creative director.

At the time, Yentob said the speculation had been "proving a serious distraction" when the BBC was in "particularly challenging times".

BBC News concluded that he did not influence its reporting of Kids Company.

Alan Yentob pictured with actor Mel Brooks in 2011

Alan Yentob alongside a smiling Mel Brooks, pictured in 2011 — Alan Yentob pictured with actor Mel Brooks in 2011

Yentob continued to front Imagine, making memorable portraits of writers like Maya Angelou, architect Frank Gehry and artist Rachel Whiteread.

But even the best-connected man in British television could not prevent the series from being almost entirely axed in 2023.

With arts programmes struggling to deliver international sales, the BBC announced it would only commission the occasional one-off special.

Having been appointed a CBE in the 2024 New Year Honours List, he sat down for an interview with his old friend, Sir Salman Rushdie.

The controversial author was still recovering from an assassination attempt, and spoke movingly about how members of the public had tried to save him.

It was to be one of Yentob's last major pieces of work for the BBC - an organisation he had been so much part of for nearly 60 years.

And, having never lost his enthusiasm and creativity during that precipitate rise through the ranks of BBC senior management, he had a special bond with many of those he interviewed.

"As an executive," the late Australian broadcaster Clive James once said, Alan Yentob "was more of an artist than the artists."

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