BBC Investigates Five Employees For Sexual Harassment

EXCLUSIVE: The BBC has been investigating a handful of employees over sexual harassment allegations, as the British national broadcaster looks to enforce its zero-tolerance approach to misconduct.

Deadline can reveal that the BBC had five sexual harassment disciplinary cases open as recently as the end of March amid a crackdown on power abuses following a workplace culture review in 2025. 

The figure was disclosed in response to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request by Deadline, which also revealed that the BBC was probing a further four cases of bullying and harassment, taking the total tally of live investigations to nine.

In its financial year to the end of March 2026, the BBC fired two employees after upholding sexual harassment allegations. A further five were “sanctioned” amid similar sexual misconduct claims. One person left the BBC before the corporation made a decision on disciplinary action. 

The figures obtained by Deadline show that the total number of disciplinary cases for bullying, harassment, and sexual harassment was at a three-year high of 27 in March. Included in this total were 11 sexual misconduct cases — also a three-year high.

The uptick follows the BBC’s workplace culture review, which found no evidence of a “toxic” environment but ended with the broadcaster’s leaders talking tough on misconduct. BBC chair Samir Shah said: “In the end, it’s quite simple: if you are a person who is prepared to abuse power or punch down or behave badly, there is no place for you at the BBC.”

The FOIA did show, however, that dismissal is not a likely outcome in disciplinary proceedings. Over the past three years, there have been a total of 72 disciplinary cases at the BBC, but only 11%, or eight individuals, were fired by the corporation. Nearly 60% were sanctioned, while 8.3% left before the BBC concluded the disciplinary case.

A BBC spokesperson said: “We take all forms of bullying, harassment and misconduct incredibly seriously. If a case is upheld, there are a range of potential sanctions available, including dismissal, which are considered on a case-by-case basis in line with our policies.”

The BBC has taken high-profile action against presenters in recent years amid misconduct allegations. This included firing MasterChef host Gregg Wallace and Jermaine Jenas, a former Match of the Day pundit. More recently, Radio 2 presenter Scott Mills was sacked following a historical allegation relating to his personal conduct.