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The BBC has admitted that it “fell short and failed people” – including its own staff – by failing to deal with “bullying and misogynistic” behaviour by its former Radio 1 DJ Tim Westwood.
The corporation has apologised after a major external inquiry found it “missed opportunities” that could have led to action. The inquiry was triggered by a 2022 Guardian and BBC News joint investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct and predatory behaviour by the DJ.
While the report found “no widespread or significant BBC knowledge of allegations or concerns about predatory sexual behaviour” it was clear that “there were instances where the organisation missed opportunities that might have led to action”, the BBC said in a statement.
It added that the allegations “were treated in isolation rather than being brought together. Had this happened, the BBC may have seen a pattern of behaviour that it could have acted on”.
“There is evidence of bullying and misogynistic behaviour on the part of Mr Westwood and the plain fact is that his general conduct was entirely incompatible with BBC values – not just now, but then,” said the BBC. “The organisation fell short and failed people – including our own staff – who had a right to expect better from us.”
The statement continued: “The Board also wants to take this opportunity to apologise on behalf of the entire BBC to anyone impacted by what the review has found.
“Your voice has been heard, and the findings of the review will further fuel the drive to ensure it does not happen again.”
The inquiry comes close to three years after a joint investigation by the Guardian and BBC News in April 2022 in which seven women accused Westwood, 65, of sexual misconduct and predatory behaviour.
He denied all the allegations, with a spokesperson saying they were “completely false”.
A little more than 24 hours after the publication of the allegations, alongside the broadcast of the BBC Three programme Tim Westwood: Abuse of Power, Westwood stepped down from his show on Capital Xtra. The women’s stories provoked a criminal inquiry by the Metropolitan police, during which the DJ was questioned under caution by officers.
A further 10 women made claims of sexual abuse, sexual misconduct and inappropriate behaviour against Westwood in another joint investigation in July. The report included a claim from a woman who said Westwood first had sex with her in the early 1990s when she was 14 and he was in his 30s. Westwood did not respond when asked to comment.
The allegations dated from 1992 to 2017, when the DJ – who began hosting BBC Radio 1’s first Rap Show in 1994 – was one of the best-known names in hip-hop and rap.
The BBC’s director general, Tim Davie, initially said the corporation had no evidence of complaints, but in July 2022 the corporation revealed it had received six – including one that was referred to the police – after a freedom of information request from BBC News. Davie had “set out the position as he understood it at the time”, said a BBC spokesperson.
Later that month, a former BBC employee told the Guardian that they had raised concerns about “unacceptable bullying” by Westwood when he was a Radio 1 DJ but felt they were warned against taking further action. Another former staff member described a sexist “boys’ club” culture at Radio 1 during his 19 years as a presenter, mainly in the 1990s and 2000s.
In August 2022, an internal BBC review found that it may have missed chances to explore concerns raised over Westwood’s conduct. It found that the corporation received several reports about Westwood in 2012, including two allegations of inappropriate behaviour and sexual misconduct, and an accusation that the radio presenter “created a toxic atmosphere amongst those he worked with at the BBC”.
In response, the BBC appointed Gemma White KC to lead an independent review of its response, and opened a 24-hour phone line to hear from potential witnesses, which was originally expected to take about six months, before it was delayed until December 2024.
Its publication was delayed again after a request from the Metropolitan police. A freedom of information request by BBC News in June last revealed the BBC had spent more than £3m on the review, which the corporation confirmed on Tuesday had increased to approximately £3.3m.
In November last year, detectives investigating allegations of non-recent sexual abuse related to Westwood submitted a file of evidence to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS). A CPS spokesperson said: “We can confirm we received a file from the Metropolitan police service regarding allegations of non-recent sexual offences allegedly committed by a man in his 60s.”
On Tuesday, a CPS spokesperson said it had no updates to provide on the case. In November, the Met confirmed Westwood had been interviewed under caution on four separate occasions regarding offences alleged to have happened in London between 1982 and 2016.
