Countryfile's Miriam O'Reilly wins BBC ageism claim

[muriel_volestrangler]

Former presenter of BBC1 rural affairs show succeeds in ageism and victimisation complaints, but not sexism claim

Former BBC presenter Miriam O'Reilly has won her case for age discrimination against the corporation after she was dropped from BBC1's rural affairs show, Countryfile.

O'Reilly, 53, took the BBC to an employment tribunal claiming age and sex discrimination after she was one of four female presenters, all in their 40s or 50s, who were dropped from the 23-year-old show.

The tribunal upheld her claim for age discrimination but not sex discrimination. It also upheld O'Reilly's claim for victimisation.

O'Reilly claimed she was hounded out of the BBC after she was unfairly blamed for newspaper stories criticising the corporation for dropping middle-aged women presenters.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/jan/11/countryfile-miriam-oreilly-tribunal

I wonder if this will affect other parts of the BBC - there have been similar complaints about news reporting, for instance - that women get shunted off to one side after they get to middle age.