Lord Patten's BBC World Service party boycotted over invite snub The invitation-only party on March 1 was said to be for "opinion formers" but in an ironic twist to events, many former World Service staff were invited having joined NGOs or companies credited with forming opinions. Ian Richardson, who was the news editor at BBC World television and launched BBC Arabic Television News, now runs his own media company and was invited as an "opinion former." Mr Richardson told the Telegraph: "I've been told quite a few of the senior people in the news department are just going to refuse to go because they are so upset that the freelancers, who have been there 10 minutes, are allowed to go but the people who spent 20 or 30 years at Bush House are being told they can't." Sir John added: "I had a conversation with somebody who said to me, 'I worked for the World Service for 32 years and to be shut out from this makes me angry'. I have taken the decision [not to go] because I just couldn't go and stand there drinking wine, saying how wonderful everything is, knowing that the people who had made it, had been told there was nothing for them. He added retired staff would have been happy to pay to attend an event or enter a ballot for tickets. A spokesman for the BBC said the event on March 1 was for opinion formers, with a ticketed celebration for staff on the following day. "I don't think we're unique in the sense that everyone is trying to do things on a tight budget at the moment," he said. In a statement, the broadcaster said: "To commemorate the 80th anniversary of the World Service and the departure from Bush House, BBC World Service is planning a special day of programmes giving unique access to the building for our audiences. To keep costs to a minimum, we have tagged on events for staff and opinion formers, which will be based on BBC premises and share the same facilities. In a tight financial environment, staff are also being asked to pay for tickets. Whilst we appreciate this may not be welcomed by all staff, we have a responsibility to use our money carefully and prioritise our audiences. Whilst we would like to be able to include a wider audience, including former staff, in a tight financial climate our priority has been to offer the limited number of tickets to current staff. We remain hugely grateful for the contribution of previous staff and their role in serving audiences across the world.