Moody

June is an odd month at the BBC. With most of its management from an academic background, they'd prefer end-of-term balls, strawberries and champagne - indeed, in the old days, an number of execs regularly held summer parties. Instead they're now stuck in appraisals, planning job cuts (sorry, re-investment of efficiencies) and trying to reach a pay deal - and they'd all prefer to get it sorted before Wimbledon.

But there's also a rather fin de siecle mood around this year, epitomised by rather languid rebuttals. For example, Caroline Thomson saying the BBC may have got top pay "a bit wrong". Someone at the BBC Trust briefing the Guardian that 8 out of 12 Trustees are due to step down by November, so that's all right then... Alan Yentob explaining to the Guardian that his basic salary of £180k, is for a role that's hard to define, but he's sort of a coach...

The organisation eschews obvious easy ways to wear a hair-shirt: when the News of the World finds the BBC plans to send over 400 staff to cover Glastonbury again (are there other festivals ?), a pained BBC spokeswoman says "Glastonbury is a major cultural event. Every staff member will have a clear, accountable role and work incredibly hard to offer unparalleled coverage."

Perhaps the BBC is reeling from the punches that haven't yet come from the coalition. No sign of a non-executive Chairman, no closure of the Trust. Jeremy Hunt's team seem to have decided its all about Charter Renewal - again. That's a very tiring prospect for the BBC.