With David Dimbleby leaving the weekly political debate show Question Time at the end of this year, who is in the running to replace him?
Almost immediately following Sunday night’s announcement from the BBC that David Dimbleby would be leaving, media commentators and possible host candidates began to rule themselves in and out.
LBC Presenter and someone with experience standing in as a Newsnight host, James O’Brien said of his chances of presenting Question Time; “Because the BBC rules, probably rightly, don’t allow you to be opinionated in work *outside* the BBC and at this peculiar junction in British political history I couldn’t wind my neck in on Trump & Brexit in my day job on LBC.”
There are other high profile BBC names that are being bounded about as potential replacements, including Nick Robinson who has served previously as the BBC’s Political Editor.
Another name being hotly tipped as the first female presenter of the show is Kirsty Wark.
My personal hunch is that the BBC will go with a hard-hitting, but safe pair of hands. The only two names in that scenario that would fit the bill to fill Dimbleby’s shoes are either ITV Political Editor and Former BBC man Robert Peston, or former Newsnight host and political interviewing heavyweight, Jeremy Paxman.
If it was my choice, it’d have to be Paxman… to quote a line from the political satire series ‘The Thick of It’ in respect of his time at Newsnight; “He will eat you up, sick you out and grout his f**king wet room with you.”
It has to be Paxman surely.