Reports of a “board-level orchestrated coup” at the BBC are “complete nonsense”, non-executive director Sir Robbie Gibb has told MPs.

Sir Robbie, whose position on the BBC board has been challenged by critics in recent weeks, was among senior leaders, including the broadcaster’s chair, Samir Shah, to face questions from the Culture, Media and Sport committee about the current crisis.

The hearing took place in the wake of the fallout over the edit of a speech by US President Donald Trump, which prompted the resignation of the corporation’s director-general and the chief executive of BBC News, and the threat of a lawsuit from the US president.

Former editorial adviser Michael Prescott, whose leaked memo sparked the recent chain of events, also answered questions from MPs – telling the hearing he felt he kept seeing “incipient problems” that were not being tackled.

He also said Mr Trump’s reputation had “probably not” been tarnished by the Panorama edit.

During his own questioning, Sir Robbie addressed concerns of potential political bias – he left BBC News in 2017 to become then prime minister Theresa May’s director of communications, a post he held until 2019, and was appointed to the BBC board in 2021 by Boris Johnson.

“I know it’s hard to marry the fact that I spent two years as director of communications for the government… and my genuine passion for impartiality,” he said.

“I want to hear the full range of views… I don’t want the BBC to be partisan or favour any particular way.”

Asked about reports and speculation that there has been a “board-level orchestrated coup”, Sir Robbie responded: “It’s up there as one of the most ridiculous charges… People had to find some angle.

“It’s complete nonsense. It’s also deeply offensive to fellow board members… people of great standing in different fields.”

He said his political work has been “weaponised” – and that it was hard as a non-executive member of the BBC to respond to criticism.

‘We should have made the decision earlier’

Mr Shah admitted the BBC was too slow in responding to the issue of the Panorama edit of Mr Trump, which had been flagged long before the leaked memo.

“Looking back, I think we should have made the decision earlier,” he said. “I think in May, as it happens.

“I think there is an issue about how quickly we respond, the speed of our response. Why do we not do it quickly enough? Why do we take so much time? And this was another illustration of that.”

Following reports of the leaked memo, it took nearly a week for the BBC to issue an apology.

Mr Shah told the committee he did not think Mr Davie needed to resign over the issue and that he “spent a great deal of time” trying to stop him from doing so.

Is director-general role too big for one person?

Asked about his own position, Mr Shah said his job now is to “steady the ship”, and that he is not someone “who walks away from a problem”.

A job advert for the BBC director-general role has since gone live on the corporation’s careers website.

Mr Shah told the hearing his view is that the role is “too big” for one person and that he is “inclined” to restructure roles at the top.

He says he believes there should also be a deputy director-general who is “laser-focused on journalism”, which is “the most important thing and our greatest vulnerability”.

Earlier in the hearing, Mr Prescott gave evidence alongside another former BBC editorial adviser, Caroline Daniel.

He told the CMS committee that there are “issues of denial” at the BBC and said “the management did not accept there was a problem” with the Panorama episode.

Mr Prescott’s memo highlighted concerns about the way clips of Mr Trump’s speech on January 6 2021 were spliced together so it appeared he had told supporters he was going to walk to the US Capitol with them to “fight like hell”.

‘I can’t think of anything I agree with Trump on’

Mr Trump has said he is going to pursue a lawsuit of between $1bn and $5bn against the broadcaster, despite receiving an official public apology.

Asked if the documentary had harmed Mr Trump’s image, Mr Prescott responded: “I should probably restrain myself a little bit, given that there is a potential legal action.

“All I could say is, I can’t think of anything I agree with Donald Trump on.”

He was later pushed on the subject, and asked again if he agreed that the programme tarnished the president’s reputation, to which he then replied: “Probably not.”

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Mr Prescott, a former journalist, also told the committee he did not know how his memo was leaked to the Daily Telegraph.

“At the most fundamental level, I wrote that memo, let me be clear, because I am a strong supporter of the BBC.

“The BBC employs talented professionals across all of its factual and non-factual programmes, and most people in this country, certainly myself included, might go as far as to say that they love the BBC.

He said he “never envisaged” the fallout that would occur. “I was hoping the concerns I had could, and would, be addressed privately in the first instance.”

Asked if he thinks the BBC is institutionally biased, he said: “No, I don’t.”

He said that “tonnes” of the BBC’s work is “world class” – but added that there is “real work that needs to be done” to deal with problems.

Mr Davie, he said, did a “first-rate job” as director-general but had a “blind spot” toward editorial failings.

The rapper Ghetts, who allegedly caused the death of a man in a hit-and-run collision, is facing further charges.

The rapper was charged at the end of last month after a 20-year-old died in a road incident in northeast London.

The musician, whose real name is Justin Clarke-Samuel, initially faced a single count of causing the death of Yubin Tamang by dangerous driving.

He now faces two further charges of driving dangerously before and after the collision on 18 October.

It is alleged he drove dangerously in Tavistock Place, in the Bloomsbury area of central London, and on other roads in the borough of Camden, north London.

The collision with Mr Tamang occurred in Redbridge Lane, Ilford, at 11.33pm on 18 October, the Met Police said. Clarke-Samuel is accused of failing to stop after his BMW hit the victim.

Mr Tamang died on 20 October.

Clarke-Samuel allegedly continued to drive dangerously in Worcester Crescent, Redbridge, on the journey back to his home in King’s Avenue, Woodford, east London.

The black BMW, which is allegedly registered and insured in the defendant’s name, was said to have suffered significant damage.

The rapper has been in custody since a preliminary appearance at Barkingside Magistrates’ Court on 27 October.

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On Monday, he appeared at the Old Bailey by videolink from Pentonville prison and spoke to confirm his name.

Mr Tamang’s family watched in the court, having travelled to the UK from Nepal.

Adjourning the case, Judge Nigel Lickley KC said Clarke-Samuel could appear in court by videolink again next time as he remanded him in custody.

Jimmy Cliff, a musical artist who helped bring reggae to an international audience, has died aged 81.

Known for hits including You Can Get It If You Really Want, The Harder They Come, and Many Rivers To Cross, his career spanned six decades.

His wife, Latifa Chambers wrote on Instagram: “It’s with profound sadness that I share that my husband, Jimmy Cliff, has crossed over due to a seizure followed by pneumonia.

“I am thankful for his family, friends, fellow artists and coworkers who have shared his journey with him.

“To all his fans around the world, please know that your support was his strength throughout his whole career. He really appreciated each and every fan for their love.”

Thanking the medical staff who helped during his illness, she added: “Jimmy, my darling, may you rest in peace. I will follow your wishes.”

Signed by his wife, and two of his children, Latifa and Lilty, the statement concluded: “We see you Legend.”

Tributes to the singer included those from Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness, calling him “a true cultural giant whose music carried the heart of our nation to the world… Jimmy Cliff told our story with honesty and soul. His music lifted people through hard times, inspired generations, and helped to shape the global respect that Jamaican culture enjoys today.”

UB40 star Ali Campbell, who covered Cliff’s song Many Rivers To Cross in 1983, also paid tribute, saying he was “absolutely heartbroken to hear about the passing of a Reggae forefather” in a post on X.

Campbell also called Cliff “a pillar of our music, and one of the first to carry reggae out into the world”.

A legend of music and screen

A two-time Grammy-winning artist, Cliff was awarded the Jamaican Order of Merit in 2003, the highest honour in the arts and sciences, from the Jamaican government.

Over the years, he would work with stars including the Rolling Stones, Sting, Elvis Costello, Annie Lennox, Paul Simon and Wyclef Jean.

He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010.

A prolific writer, frequently expressing his humanitarian views through his work, his 1969 track Vietnam was reportedly described by Bob Dylan as “the best protest song” he had ever heard.

Cliff was also well known for cover versions of songs, including Johnny Nash’s I Can See Clearly Now, which appeared on the soundtrack of the 1993 movie Cool Runnings, and Cat Stevens’ Wild World.

He twice performed on high-profile US chat show Saturday Night Live.

An actor and a musician, as well as singing the title track of 1972 cult classic The Harder They Come, Cliff also starred in it.

One of the first major commercial releases to come out of Jamaica, the movie is credited with bringing reggae to the world, as well as showing a grittier and more realistic side to the country.

During this time, Cliff’s fame rivalled Bob Marley as the reggae’s most prominent artist.

The storyline, which revolved around Cliff’s character, Ivan, moving to Kingston, Jamaica, to make it as a musical superstar, had parallels with his own.

‘Hurricane Hattie’

He was born James Chambers, during a hurricane, on 30 July 1944, in St James Parish, northwestern Jamaica.

In the 1950s, he moved with his father from the family farm to Kingston, determined to succeed in the music industry.

He began writing as Jamaica was gaining its independence from Britain, and as the early sounds of reggae – first called ska – were being developed.

At just 14, he became nationally famous for the song Hurricane Hattie, which he had written himself.

Cliff would go on to record over 30 albums and perform all over the world, including in Paris, in Brazil and at the World’s Fair, an international exhibition held in New York in 1964.

The following year, Island Records’ Chris Blackwell, the producer who launched Bob Marley And The Wailers, invited Cliff to work in the UK.

‘I still have many rivers to cross!’

Speaking about his burning passion for life during a 2019 interview, when the star had begun losing his sight, Cliff said: “When I’ve achieved all my ambitions, then I guess that I will have done it and I can just say ‘great’.

“But I’m still hungry. I want it. I’ve still got the burning fire that burns brightly inside of me – like I just said to you. I still have many rivers to cross!”

Cliff’s last studio album, Refugees, made with Wyclef Jean, was released in 2022, and the singer said he wrote the title track “due to emotional feelings towards freedom taken away from human beings”.