BBC Drops Denise Van Outen From New Lloyd Webber Talent Search Show

Another gender-related complaint aimed at the BBC, this time over the failure to bring back actress and singer Denise Van Outen as a judge on the show “Over the Rainbow,” the latest Andrew Lloyd-Webber talent show. Ms. Van Outen is expecting a child. The network says Ms. Van Outen’s pregnancy has nothing to do with her failure to return as a judge on the show, since “none” of the previous judges on the Lloyd Webber talent shows are returning. But the Daily Mail says the pregnancy is directly related to the decision, quoting the remark of a BBC producer, “You’re pregnant, so of course there’s no way you can do the show”. Ms. Van Outen’s replacement is likely to be singer Charlotte Church, who is a decade younger.

The BBC has been criticized over its failure to renew the contract of 60-ish judge Arlene Phillips on the show “Strictly Come Dancing” and the termination of news anchors Anna Ford and Moira Stuart, both also in their sixties.