The Plan

 The BBC's Annual Plan is an odd beast, getting odder. The 2025/26 version allows itself 19 pages of 'context', largely trumpeting how well the BBC is doing in terrible financial circumstances. That's up from 14 pages of blah in the 2024/25 version. 

And then, when we actually get to the sections on "Strategic Priorities and Creative Plans", each division - News, Content (tv and radio) and Nations & Regions, reminds how well they've done in the previous twelve months. 

Sometimes there's a bit of overcooking overcounting. In January 2024, BBC Sounds claimed 5m signed in accounts. This was apparently wrong, and the target for 2025/26 has been pushed back to 4.8m. 

In News, the year ahead will see daily content from BBC Verify, whether there's anything to verify or not. And in a worrying echo of the days of Martyn 'Good News' Lewis, we get this promise:  'We will also broaden the agenda and cover content that is more relevant, positive and engaging – especially to those feeling alienated by the relentless modern news cycle'. 

'To reach young audiences with our most important stories, we will expand our presence on YouTube, TikTok and Instagram this year, and invest further in our vertical and shortform video capabilities, to drive off-platform reach and enrich experiences on our owned platforms. These measures will also help to better serve audiences from lower income, C2DE socio-demographic groups.'

Bet you never realised that the BBC is big on 'Enterprise Leadership', did you ?  Can't you tell ?

'Enterprise leadership is about developing world-class leaders who are constantly prioritising what is best for the whole BBC while leading highly productive and values driven teams. We are on a mission to create an organisation where world-class leaders are building a world-class BBC.

'In order to realise this mission, we have developed a suite of leadership development programmes, under the brand banner of Enterprise Leadership. This training will ensure that leaders are not only living the BBC’s Values, adhering to the BBC Code of Conduct, and delivering the very best for all audiences, but also that leaders are encouraging others across the whole enterprise to do so as well.'