He dared speak the truth about the BBC

There were only two radio reviewers who ever ruffled the feathers of senior management within the BBC. In terms of ratings, the BBC has radio pretty much its own way; neither the competition, which is negligible, nor critical comment is liable to sway a BBC radio mandarin if he firmly believes that (to take an example) You and Yours is groundbreaking investigative journalism in the Reithian tradition. The hard economics of television does not apply — and, you have to say, that with some exceptions, including the one quoted above, BBC Radio is not noticeably worse off for this lack of externally imposed rigour. All the better for it, in fact.

So, while criticism could always be shrugged off, there were a couple of pundits who were able to raise the temperature within Broadcasting House (and later White City). These were Michael Vestey of The Spectator and Gillian Reynolds of the Daily Telegraph.