Here be dragons: does moving power to the north work?

The Guardian Business Sunday 19 July 2026, 07:00 UTC By Esther Addley 1 min read

Key Points

Andy Burnham’s recent promise to create a ‘No 10 North’ echoes BBC’s successful Out of London planWhen the BBC first announced its intention to move a significant chunk of its operation to Salford in Greater Manchester – the “Out of London” plan, as the then director general Mark Thompson called it in 2004, with a faint “here be dragons” whiff – there were plenty in the organisation who were scornful that it could ever work. Senior staff would never leave the capital. Star talent wouldn’t...

Andy Burnham’s recent promise to create a ‘No 10 North’ echoes BBC’s successful Out of London plan

When the BBC first announced its intention to move a significant chunk of its operation to Salford in Greater Manchester – the “Out of London” plan, as the then director general Mark Thompson called it in 2004, with a faint “here be dragons” whiff – there were plenty in the organisation who were scornful that it could ever work.

Senior staff would never leave the capital. Star talent wouldn’t dream of travelling. It “didn’t take a brain surgeon”, said the Breakfast presenter and Strictly Come Dancing winner Chris Hollins, to see that the prime minister would never appear in person.

Andy Burnham (PERSON) London (LOCATION) Salford (LOCATION) Greater Manchester (LOCATION) Mark Thompson (PERSON) Breakfast (ORG) Chris Hollins (PERSON)

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Here be dragons: does moving power to the north work?

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