The challenges facing the BBC – and the sustained attacks it finds itself under – will be the subject of a live event at Burgh House next month.

In late 2020 Patrick Barwise and Peter York released The War Against the BBC: How an Unprecedented Combination of Hostile Forces Is Destroying Britain’s Greatest Cultural Institution... And Why You Should Care.

They will be interviewed on stage at Burgh House on September 1 by Ham&High editor André Langlois, as well as taking questions from the audience.

Published by Penguin, the book is an analysis of the external challenges now facing the BBC, from attacks by the press to persistent allegations about its impartiality.

The subject, as ever, is timely, with the scandal over the 1995 Panorama interview with Princess Diana; a former member of the "anti-woke" GB News team becoming a non-executive director of the BBC and trying to block an editorial appointment; the nomination of former Daily Mail editor Paul Dacre to head up regulator Ofcom; and further threats to the corporation's funding.

The book also covers the growing competition from broadcast and online rivals; the impact of technology trends, consumption trends and rising content and distribution costs; the endless attacks on the BBC’s impartiality, mainly by right-leaning politicians, think tanks and newspapers; and the wider culture war context.

Patrick Barwise is emeritus professor of management and marketing at London Business School, which he joined in 1976 after an early career at IBM. He has published widely on management, marketing and media, and is chairman of the Archive of Market and Social Research and a former chairman of Which?.

Peter York is an author, journalist and broadcaster, as well as a management consultant. Under both hats the subject of social groupings and market segments is his major preoccupation. His best-known description of a social group came in his best-selling 1980s book The Official Sloane Ranger Handbook, which he co-authored with Ann Barr. He is president of the Media Society

The event is on Wednesday September 1, 7pm-8.30pm (doors at 6.30pm). Book tickets burghhouse.museumssites.com – £8 (£6 for Friends of Burgh House) + booking fee.