BBC launches investigation as radio presenter dies two months after being forced to retire

THE BBC have launched an investigation following a complaint from the family of a radio presenter who died two months after he was forced to retire.

Richard Cartridge, 72, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2016, worked at the Beeb for 47 years and was a mentor to stars including BBC Breakfast’s Mike Bushell.

But his daughter Lucy, 32, claims that following his diagnosis, Richard was treated as a “weak, old man” by senior BBC staff and felt “bullied” by them.

And she told how she feels they are “directly responsible” for his death.

Following his diagnosis, Richard’s pay was cut by £20 a week, and a reasonable request to work from home during the Covid-19 pandemic due to his disability was also refused.

In June 2020 he was told out of the blue that his contract was not being renewed.

In his final emotional broadcast on June 7, Richard, who had left the BBC in 2006 but returned as a freelancer, admitted: “I don’t know what I’m going to do now.”

Within weeks his condition had deteriorated so rapidly that he was hospitalised.

Six weeks later he died.

And Lucy – who wrote to Director-General Tim Davie this month about her father’s treatment – told how at their last meeting he was “a shell of a person.”

Lucy, who met with BBC HR staff this year to discuss her concerns, said: “My dad was a loyal BBC employee for almost 50 years, but he was treated with so little respect.

“There was no care or empathy.

“He felt that attitudes towards him shifted after his diagnosis, which did not affect his work.

“His work was really his lifeline and he gave it everything.

“But after that he felt bullied by one senior staff member in particular.

“In June he was told he was being let go and ordered to announce his retirement, or his manager would do it, and there would be no goodbye show.

“I know he felt so let down. And weeks later he was in hospital.

“When I last saw him, he had changed from my charismatic dad to a shell of a person.

“I do hold the BBC directly responsible for his death.

“I feel if they hadn’t treated him so badly, he would still be here, and I now want them to apologise for that treatment.

“My dad no longer has a voice, and that’s why I’m speaking now.

“No other daughters, sons, parents or grandparents should go through what we have.”

A BBC spokesperson said: “Richard Cartridge was a much loved presenter and our sympathies are with his family.

“We have spoken to his daughter Lucy and remain in contact with her.”