A report detailing the BBC’s top-earners dominated the news on Wednesday (18 July), following a change to the BBC’s Royal Charter, which means the corporation is now required to reveal the pay bracket of any star taking home over £150,000 per year.
However, the focus hasn’t just been on the salaries that were revealed, as many have pointed out that a number of top names are missing.
While the likes of Chris Evans, Claudia Winkleman and Danny Dyer are on the list, a selection of other fan favourites - including ‘EastEnders’ actors and regular news presenters - do not appear.
Here are nine stars whose salaries do not feature and the likely reasons why…
1. Annie Mac
While her Radio 1 colleagues Nick Grimshaw, Greg James and Scott Mills have all had their wages revealed, Annie’s name was absent from the list.
The likely explanation for this is that she was on maternity leave for a large portion of the financial year covered, having welcomed her second child in January 2017.
2. Steve McFadden
A number of ‘EastEnders’ fans have taken to Twitter to share their surprise at the fact Steve isn’t among the show’s top-earners.
The actor has been offscreen since February 2017 but did appear regularly for the rest of the financial year (from April 2016).
3. June Brown
Likewise, many soap fans have been asking why ‘EastEnders’ veteran June isn’t there either.
When HuffPost UK contacted the BBC with this list of stars, they responded by reiterating that the government requires them to publish the name of everyone paid more than £150,000 - so we can only assume June’s paycheck is less than this.
4. Sue Perkins
While Mel Giedroyc is present and correct, her ‘Great British Bake Off’ co-presenter Sue is missing.
This is likely to be down to the fact Mel undertakes a number of solo projects for the BBC - including contributing to the Eurovision coverage and co-hosting ‘Let It Shine’ - while the pair’s ‘Bake Off’ earnings came via Love Productions.
When a show is made by an independent company (in this case Love Productions) the BBC pays for the show, and it’s that company who pays the stars’ wages.
5. John Craven
Although Matt Baker is the only ‘Countryfile’ presenter whose salary is on the list, it’s worth noting that he has a number of other BBC roles, hosting ‘The One Show’ and fronting ‘Wild Alaska Live’ this month.
Even so, some fans have pointed out that it seems John isn’t a BBC top-earner, jokily suggesting why:
6. Emily Maitlis
While ‘Newsnight’ presenters Kirsty Wark and Evan Davies are on the list, Emily is not, and as talk of a gender pay gap rages on, this has not gone unnoticed.
The BBC is yet to directly address specific observations, but a statement from Director-General Tony Hall does mention the proportion of men and women who work for the corporation.
“At the moment, of the talent earning over £150,000, two thirds are men and one third are women,” he said. “We’ve set a clear target for 2020: we want all our lead and presenting roles to be equally divided between men and women.”
7. Louise Minchin
‘BBC Breakfast’ host Louise is another female broadcaster absent from the list. Her co-host Dan Walker has address this on Twitter:
Naga Munchetty’s other BBC roles include a stint on ‘Strictly Come Dancing’, contributing to ‘Newsnight’, presenting ‘Sunday Morning Live’ and being part of the team covering last June’s EU Referendum results.
8. Matt LeBlanc
While his ex ‘Top Gear’ co-host Chris Evans has positively raked in the cash during the last year, Matt hasn’t made the cut.
However, this probably isn’t because the former ‘Friends’ star isn’t earning enough.
It’s more likely that a sizeable amount of Matt’s pay comes from BBC Worldwide, who own a huge chunk of ‘Top Gear’, and do not have to declare salaries.
9. Anton Du Beke
While all four of the ‘Strictly’ judges and its two presenters are on the list - with some being paid more than others - none of the pros are there.
And while it’s perhaps not surprising that some of the lesser-known dancers aren’t making £150,000, it’s fair to have thought Anton could be on a higher wage.
The BBC have never confirmed what the ‘Strictly’ pros get paid, it’s previously been reported that their fee is £30,000 per series.