Attenborough, Fry to lead BBC PSB effort

A series of big-name lectures and public meetings will be at the centre of a BBC lobbying campaign on its public service future.

The corporation announced it would throw open the issue to its viewers and listeners after Ofcom began its public service broadcasting review.

Sir David Attenborough, Stephen Fry and journalist Will Hutton will give lectures while BBC Trustees will take part in radio phone-ins and town hall meetings around the country.

> Check out what industry leaders and DS readers are saying about PSB

The BBC and BBC Trust have also commissioned research on the attitudes of the public and programme makers to PSB. The lectures, results and other material will be collected on a new website.

Options on the table include giving TV Licence proceeds, traditionally reserved for the BBC, to other broadcasters. All interested parties will be making their case in public and to Ofcom in the next few months, and the BBC has said its official submission will come in June.

Sir Michael Lyons, chairman of the BBC Trust, said: "Ofcom's first-stage report raises some important issues which require serious consideration and open debate. The Trust will listen to a wide range of opinion as we consider our response, and we will place special emphasis on the views of the wider public. Their interests must be at the heart of all debates and the conclusions finally reached."

Director general Mark Thompson added: "I am pleased that the Ofcom report reaffirms the audiences' view that the BBC is the cornerstone of public service broadcasting in Britain. As part of our engagement with the review, I want to focus on what our audiences want from us in the future.

"The BBC has always innovated, but I am really struck by the early successes of iPlayer. How audiences will want to receive programmes like Doctor Who, Gavin And Stacey or News 24 in the future is something that we've done a lot of thinking about. I'm looking forward to hearing from the public and the creative industries what they want from the BBC as we move to a digital society."