Caroline Thomson rules herself out of BBC director general position
Caroline Thomson, the former BBC chief operating officer who was a frontrunner in the previous search for a director general, has been appointed chair of the industry body responsible for helping consumers switch to digital TV, thus ruling herself out of the BBC chief job.
Thomson confirmed she was "not a candidate" as she was "wanting to get on” with her “other career", cemented by the fact that BBC Trust’s Lord Patten, who is planning to have appointed a new DG within the next two weeks, had not contacted her.
BBC News reported her a favourite to take the job and in an online poll Guardian readers placed her first amongst a field of 15 potential candidates, receiving 18 per cent support. Thomson was the bookies favourite as well, with Ladbrokes offering 5/2 odds on her taking the top job.
However Thomson has been qutoed as saying she feels she would be unlikely to be approached but is holding out the possibility of a change of heart if Patten was to be "incredibly persuasive".