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In November 2012, Tony Hall (1965) - Lord Hall of Birkenhead - was appointed Director General of the BBC.

Lord Hall, who has been Chief Executive of the Royal Opera House for the last 12 years, will be standing down from the Royal Opera House in early 2013. During his time there he has been widely credited with bringing financial stability to the organisation and turning round the Royal Opera House, which had been in crisis before he joined, an approach he also applied to the Cultural Olympiad. 

Lord Hall worked previously for the BBC, joining in 1973 as a news trainee. During his 28 years at the corporation he oversaw the launch of Radio 5 live, the BBC News Channel, the BBC News website and BBC Parliament and was head of BBC News and Current Affairs from 1996 to 2001. 

On his appointment, Lord Hall said: "I believe passionately in the BBC and that's why I have accepted Lord Patten's invitation to become Director General.

"This organisation is an incredibly important part of what makes the United Kingdom what it is. And of course it matters not just to people in this country - but to tens of millions around the world too.

"I'm committed to ensuring our news services are the best in the world. I'm committed to making this a place where creative people, the best and the brightest, want to work.

"And I know from my first days here as a news trainee, to my time as head of news and current affairs, to my time now at the Royal Opera House, that I can't do it on my own. Having the right teams working together, sparking off each other, is key. I want to build a world class team to lead a world class BBC."

Lord Hall will be the 16th Director General of the BBC and is expected to start in early March 2013.