Ross to lose £3m in pay cut

The BBC host has reportedly accepted a 50% salary slash...

11:39 17 December 2009

Radio host and television presenter Jonathan Ross has allegedly accepted that he will have to take a drastic cut of 50% in pay if he wants to continue working for the BBC.

The star current £18 three-year deal ends in June, but BBC managers are reportedly rushing to reach a new agreement as soon as possible.

Ross was suspended for three months last year for making obscene phone calls to 'Fawlty Towers' actor Andrew Sachs on Russell Brand's radio show.

In wake of the public outcry regarding the Sachsgate scandal, Ross has reportedly also agreed to shorten his next contract from three years to two.

Ross attracted further criticism in 2007 when he joked at the British Comedy Awards that his salary meant he was "worth 1,000 BBC journalists".

On the BBC, Ross presents a film programme and a successful chat show 'Friday Night with Jonathan Ross'. He also has his own radio show with the corporation.

Recently some of the BBC's top earning executives have had their salaries unveiled following calls for transparency regarding where the public's license fees were going.

It was revealed that the Beeb's 50 highest-paid executives earned as much as £13.6 million last year. 27 of these earned more money than the Prime Minister.

The BBC has stated that it would not comment on individual contractual arrangements.