BBC director said he didn’t want to turn Proms into a ‘political platform’

The BBC boss behind the ‘creative’ decision to censor Rule Britannia and Land of Hope and Glory at Last Night of the Proms previously said he didn’t want the concert to be a ‘political platform’.

David Pickard became director of the BBC Proms in 2015 after holding various prestigious roles in classical music – including as general director of opera house Glyndebourne. 

Upon his appointment, he said he wanted to bring ‘world-class classical music to the widest possible audience’ and was praised for his ability to introduce new listeners to the genre.

Now, the London-born Cambridge graduate is at the centre of controversy surrounding the BBC’s decision to drop the singing of patriotic anthems at this year’s concert after critics dubbed them ‘racist’. 

In 2019, Mr Pickard told The Daily Telegraph he didn’t want the Proms to be a ‘political platform’ after remainers gave out EU flags to audience members before the event the year prior.

His hopes were dashed, however, when the 2019 concert was also hijacked by flag-bearing anti-Brexit campaigners.

This years audience-free event has again been marred by politics after Boris Johnson waded into the anthems row, condemning the BBC for ‘wetness’ over its decision to drop the singing.

The national broadcaster initially considered dropping the patriotic songs after criticism of their supposed links to slavery and colonialism, but after a huge row bosses rowed back and announced they would be played instead, but not sung.

They claim that the lack of an audience to sing along is behind the ‘creative’ decision. 

BBC director-general Lord Hall – who is due to step down in September – said he backed the decision.

He told the BBC’s media editor Amol Rajan: ‘They’ve come to the right conclusion.’

Asked whether there had been a discussion about dropping songs because of their association with Britain’s imperial history, Lord Hall said: ‘The whole thing has been discussed by David (Pickard) and his colleagues of course it has.’ 

When Mr Pickard took over as director in 2015, controller of BBC Radio 3 Alan Davey told Cambridge’s Corpus Christi College – Mr Pickard’s alumnus – that the piano player would ‘bring a whole host of fresh ideas’ to the concert.

Mr Pickard said: ‘Like so many people, my interest in classical music was inspired by visits to the Proms as a teenager and it has been my privilege to play a role as a contributor for the past 20 years, firstly with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and more recently with the annual Glyndebourne Prom.

‘I look forward now to building on the founding principles of the Proms – to bring world-class classical music to the widest possible audience.’ 

His groundbreaking initiatives included a ‘Proms at …’ series which looked at music in unusual spaces – including a multi-storey car park in London.

Speaking his aims prior to the 2017 proms, Mr Pickard said: ‘It is 122 years since the first season of “Henry Wood Promenade Concerts” and 90 years since the BBC took over responsibility for the festival. 

‘The world has changed considerably since 1895, but the BBC Proms continues to uphold the same founding principles of those very first concerts: to bring the best of classical music to the widest possible audiences.’

A BBC spokesperson said: ‘For the avoidance of any doubt, these songs will be sung next year. We obviously share the disappointment of everyone that the Proms will have to be different but believe this is the best solution in the circumstances and look forward to their traditional return next year.’