BBC head says broadcaster must reform or die

Patten, who must find a new director general to sort out the mess, agreed that management structures had proved inadequate.

Apparently decisions about the programme went up through every damned layer of BBC management, bureaucracy, legal checks - and still emerged, he said.

One of the jokes I made, and actually it wasn't all that funny, when I came to the BBC ... was that there were more senior leaders in the BBC than there were in the Chinese Communist Party.

Patten ruled out resigning himself but other senior jobs are expected to be on the line, while BBC supporters fear investigative journalism will be scaled back. Patten said he expected to name Entwistle's successor in weeks, not months.

Among the immediate challenges are threats of litigation.

McAlpine, a close ally of former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, has indicated he will sue for damages.

Claims for compensation are also likely from victims who say Savile, one of the most recognisable personalities on British television in the 1960s, 70s and 80s, sexually abused them as children, sometimes on BBC premises.

Inquiries

Two inquiries are already under way, looking at failures at Newsnight and allegations relating to Savile, both of which could make uncomfortable reading for senior figures.

Police have also launched a major inquiry into Savile's crimes and victims' allegations of a high-profile paedophile ring. Detectives said they had arrested their third suspect on

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