Birthday boy

BBC DG Lord Hall celebrates his 67th birthday today with a column in The Times, reflecting on social mobility.

"As someone who grew up on Merseyside in a household where neither parent was university educated, and who was lucky enough to be awarded a council-funded place at an independent school, it’s something I have always been passionate about."

He lays out his track record at the Royal Opera House and the BBC, and heralds two new pre-employment training schemes from Auntie.

"The first, based in London and Salford, is designed to level the playing field for 50 school leavers from socially diverse backgrounds. Developed with the Sutton Trust, it will support disadvantaged students to apply for sought-after apprenticeships both in the BBC and across the wider creative sector.

"The second, based in Cardiff, will offer ten full-time paid traineeships to high-potential raw talent. Each trainee will receive intensive BBC training in journalism and all the support they need to give them a fair shot at ten brand new BBC Wales journalism apprenticeships."