BBC Director-General to step down He joined the BBC as a trainee in 1979 and worked on programmes including Watchdog, Newsnight and Panorama before leaving the corporation to become chief executive of Channel 4 from 2002 to 2004. Lord Patten said Mr Thompson had been "an outstanding Director-General." He said: "He took over during a traumatic period in the corporation's history and subsequently enhanced its reputation for creativity and quality, while setting the course for the BBC's digital future. I will miss him on both a personal and professional level and I wish him the very best of luck for the future. The trust will shortly begin the process of recruiting a successor. His time in the top job has seen the BBC hit by scandals including Sachsgate which saw a public outcry over obscene messages left by Jonathan Ross and Russell Brand on Andrew Sachs' answerphone which were then broadcast on Brand's Radio 2 show. In 2007, there was also Crowngate which saw then BBC1 controller Peter Fincham resign after misleading footage appearing to show the Queen storming out of a photoshoot was used in a trailer. The issues of excessive pay, salaries for top talent and bonuses also caused problems with the BBC taking on a more transparent stance and publishing executive's expenses claims. Mr Thompson used a speech to the 2010 Edinburgh International Television Festival to announce a more austere approach, warning that forthcoming cuts would lead to the loss of "established stars." He also oversaw the move to Salford which has seen around 2,000 staff move north and some high-profile faces, including BBC Breakfast Sian Williams, refuse to go. Successes include the launch of the iPlayer which has been a huge hit and allows viewers to catch up on shows via internet-connected TVs, computers and mobile phones.