"I think [the BBC] has changed," said Baroness James, who was one of its governors between 1988 and 1993. "And sometimes it seems like a very large and unwieldy ship that's been floating there since 1920 taking on more and more and more cargo, building more decks to accommodate it, recruiting more officers - all very comfortably cabined, usually at salaries far greater than their predecessors enjoyed -- and with a crew somewhat discontented and some a little mutinous, the ship rather sinking close to the Plimsoll line and the customers feeling they paid too much for the journey and not quite sure where they're going, or indeed, who is the captain."

After conceding that although her view was perhaps "a little unfair", she said it was how many people saw the BBC, and she then slammed a couple more torpedoes into the tubes as she raised the subject of corporation remuneration.

"It is extraordinary that 375 [BBC managers] earn over 100,000 [pounds] and 37-plus more than the prime minister," she said. "An organisation that has 37 of its managers earning more than the prime minister ought to ask itself 'Is this justified?' "