Extras producer - BBC is still hideously white

Published Wednesday 20 February 2008 at 12:40 by Matthew Hemley

Extras producer Charlie Hanson has accused the BBC of failing ethnic minorities, claiming the number of black directors and producers working at the Corporation has not increased in the last 15 years.

Hanson, a leading television producer, who was also behind the BBC’s first black written and performed comedy show, The Real McCoy, said that there were few “black faces” in senior production roles at the Corporation and attacked it for its failure to nurture black talent, particularly in its in-house comedy departments.

His comments echo those of Greg Dyke, former director-general at the BBC, who labelled the Corporation “hideously white” in 2001. Hanson’s criticisms also come just a few weeks after comedian Lenny Henry called for the number of black and Asian people working as commissioners and directors at the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Five to be increased.

Hanson, who co-founded the Black Theatre Co-operative in 1979, now known as Nitro, said Henry was “brave to speak out” and claimed that nothing had changed at the BBC since he worked on The Real McCoy in 1991, where everyone behind the scenes was white.

Hanson revealed that while working on the show, he had to insist on having a black assistant producer, but said that person was not offered any work after the programme’s run.

He added: “Certainly back then there was no effort to foster that talent and sadly I am back at the BBC comedy department now and there are still no black faces really.

“I don’t think there are in commissioning either. It is as bad as it was 15 years ago. Lenny is absolutely right.

“There are more black faces on screen now and casting has improved because the casting department will bring forward black actors and actresses for parts where a writer did not specify whether they should be black. That is a big change. But I don’t think there has been a nurturing of black producer and black directing talent.”

Hanson, whose credits also include Desmond’s, Birds of a Feather and BBC1’s Not Going Out, said he could only think of one black director working at the BBC, and claimed that this person had only been brought in on his recommendation.

“I managed to drag him in to meet [former head of comedy] Jon Plowman and he got a job. But I feel that I am having to do it all these years later when people paid to work at the BBC aren’t doing it,” he said.

It was revealed earlier this year that the BBC was falling short of targets set by Dyke to ensure that 12.5% of all the Corporation’s staff and 7% of its senior management came from ethic minority groups by 2008.

By the end of 2007, the number of all staff from ethnic minorities was 10.9%, but the senior management figure was 4.3%, down from the 5.1% in 2006.

A spokeswoman for the BBC said: “The BBC is committed to reflecting the diversity of the UK, both within its workforce and in on-air representation.

“One of the reasons for the board deciding not to take their bonuses was because those targets, with the exception of the disability target, had not been met. In August last year, the board had met and agreed they would work to meeting these targets.”

Last year, Equity held a major event to discuss diversity within TV and theatre, where BBC editorial executive of diversity Mary FitzPatrick admitted the Corporation needed to be “braver” with its on-screen portrayal of diversity, including its casting of black and minority ethnic groups.