Lt-Gen. Sir Edward Ian Claud Jacob (1899-1993) was Director-General from 1952 to 1959.
Jacob was a professional soldier, serving as Military Assistant Secretary to the British War Cabinet. In 1946 the BBC asked him to run the European Service. He went on to manage all Overseas Services, then took a sabbatical at the Ministry of Defence in 1951.
In 1952 he returned as Director-General. Jacob liked corporate planning and led the BBC without interfering much with programmes. His ten year plan included regional television and the second channel.
Jacob promoted the BBC as the national broadcaster when ITV began and audiences dropped. Staff liked him. He left the BBC on 31st December 1959, having groomed Hugh Carleton Greene as his successor.
Directors-General
John Reith
First Director-General, 1922-1938
FW Ogilvie
Second Director-General 1938-1942
Cecil Graves
Joint Director-General 1942-1943
RW Foot
Joint Director-General 1942-1943, Fourth Director-General 1943-1944
William Haley
Fifth Director-General 1944-1952
Ian Jacob
Sixth Director-General 1952-1959
Hugh Carleton-Greene
Seventh Director-General 1960-1969
Charles Curran
Eighth Director-General 1969-1977
Ian Trethowan
Ninth Director-General 1977-1982
Alasdair Milne
Tenth Director-General 1982-1987
Michael Checkland
Eleventh Director-General 1987-1992
John Birt
Twelfth Director-General 1992-2000
Greg Dyke
Thirteenth Director-General 2000-2004
Mark Thompson
Fourteenth Director-General 2004-2012
George Entwistle
Fifteenth Director-General 2012
Tony Hall
Sixteenth Director-General 2013-2020
Tim Davie
Seventeenth Director-General 2020-
