The enforced move of some London-based BBC staff to Salford Quays in Greater Manchester has been causing considerable angst all round.
However, Tim Walker, who writes the Mandrake diary in the Daily Telegraph, has revealed that one of Radio 5 live’s presenters, Scots-born Rhod Sharp, will certainly not be involved in any of the on-going hassle.
Walker explains: “Sharp, a Scot, has equipment in the attic of his house in Marblehead, Massachusetts, where he lives full-time, which enables him to present the four-hour world affairs news show ('Up All Night') remotely from the United States three times a week between 1am and 5am, British time.
“The eccentric arrangement is not spoken of by Sharp when he is on air, leaving listeners with the impression that he operates from BBC Television Centre in West London as opposed to 3000 miles away. I gather not everyone at the station is thrilled that he has escaped the Salford edict.”
Walker quotes a BBC 'toiler' as saying: “Sharp’s situation shows very clearly that, with all the advances in communications technology, the whole notion of a base for presenters and other members of staff is pretty old hat.
“The move amounts to nothing more than a very expensive and impractical nod to political correctness.”
The BBC is reported to be asking some 1500 staffers to move to the new Salford headquarters – MediaCity UK.
