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The independent inquiry into what the BBC knew about the former Radio 1 DJ Tim Westwood’s conduct has been published almost three years after a joint investigation by the Guardian and BBC News.
The investigation told the stories of a number of women who accused the 67-year-old of sexual misconduct and predatory behaviour.
Gemma White KC examined thousands of records spanning Westwood’s two-decade career at the BBC, and heard from more than 120 people before publishing her 174-page report on Tuesday.
Large parts of it are redacted - to ensure the report does not interfere with a criminal investigation into Westwood, according to a source at the BBC - but it nonetheless contains a number of previously unpublished allegations. These included 22 from members of the public, only two of which were included in the Guardian/BBC News investigation.
Westwood chose not to participate in the inquiry, White said. His legal team said the vague nature of the allegations and ongoing police investigation had prevented him from defending himself.
They said he “has never had any sexual interest in children under the age of 16”, had not acted in a “predatory and/or sexual manner” and “did not (and does not) present any risk to young women, at the BBC nor elsewhere”. He denied bullying and harassment, but said he had complained about “some of his colleagues’ poor attitude to work” which “contributed to a divisive atmosphere within some of the teams with which he worked”.
Allegations from members of the public
White details allegations from members of the public which had not been reported to the BBC. Details of 18 of the 22 allegations have been fully redacted. Among those published include allegations that Westwood:
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“Hounded” a 17-year-old Black woman with phone calls and texts.
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Invited a girl who was 15 or 16 back to his home following an under-16 night, after she had added him on Blackberry to get information about the event.
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Contacted a woman who had shared her business card, and appeared agitated when she did not want to meet late at night.
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“Hurled” a can of drink at a woman who was serving in a club.
Allegations reported to BBC
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A former BBC staff member told the corporation their son had witnessed Westwood propositioning a 15-year-old girl in a night club in around 2007. The BBC reported the complaint to the Metropolitan police, who took no action.
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A BBC employee said in 2022 that a guest on Radio 1 had described potential sexual assault by Westwood between 2004 and 2007. They said they had reported it to a more senior employee, but White found no evidence the complaint had been documented. Westwood’s lawyers said he was never spoken to about the incident.
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A student told the review about Westwood referring to her breasts during a 1Xtra DriveTime show in 2010, calling her her “cuddly” and miming grabbing her breasts, which his lawyers say he strongly denies.
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A Sun journalist contacted Radio 1 in November 2012 saying they had been given tipoffs about Westwood and “inappropriate relations with young girls”. A senior figure flagged allegations made about Westwood on Twitter to HR and the corporate investigations team, which decided that no action would be taken without further evidence.
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White concluded that senior BBC did not think Westwood had had sexual contact with 15-year-old girls, but that the issue “ought to have been formally raised with him” and the online allegations should have been examined further.
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Allegations about treatment of BBC colleagues
White said many current and former BBC employees had complained about Westwood’s conduct, the majority about his behaviour on the 1Xtra DriveTime show, which he presented from September 2009 to July 2012.
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“Many” BBC employees “perceived there to be a close relationship between the controllers and Tim Westwood”.
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Witnesses felt they were unable to complain because of the “feeling that … that senior management were likely to side with presenters”.
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Westwood made repeated comments about guests and staff members’ bodies, particularly about women’s breasts.
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Until Westwood was removed from the 1Xtra DriveTime show in 2012, “the approach appears to have been to raise issues informally … and, when the situation did not improve, to move BBC staff working on the 1Xtra DriveTime show to other programmes”.
