Forum Topic

Is Natasha Kaplinsky  worth a salary of £475,000

Here are what some of the people in the headlines this week earn per year followed by per hour, compared to some national averages, and some other high profile figures.Should people be paid such high salaries? For eample now that Natasha Kaplinsky has moved to BBC News her salary has leeped up to £475,000 per year. That comes out of our licence money. Can the BBC serious justify this? Would do you think??(All salaries are expressed annually, and then in hours, where an annual salary is divided by 52 to get a weekly figure, and then by 37.5 to get an hourly, except where, as in the case of Jonathan Ross, a different time commitment is known.)2005 average national salary: £22,900; £11.74Average national senior managers: £55,000; £28.21Average national supervisor role: £24,000; £12.31Average traditional labour jobs (such as foremen): £21,000; £10.77Average national skilled labourer: £17,500; £8.97Average national clerical staff: less than £15,000; £7.69Jonathan Ross (just for his radio show): £530,000; £3397.44Top earning GPs (according to tabloid press - 40 hour week): £250,000; £120.19Average earning GPs (according to Patricia Hewitt - 52.5 hour week): £94,000; £45.19Live-out nanny: up to £30,000; £15.38Philip Green: £1.2bn; £615384.62Elton John: £33m; £16923.077David Beckham: £19.3m; £9897.44Lucian Freud: £12m; £6153.85Kate Moss: £11m; £5641.026The Queen: £7.9m; £4051.28; Jose Mourinho : £5.2m; £2666.67Jamie Oliver : £3.75m; £1923.077 Natasha Kaplinsky : £475,000; £243.59Barbara Windsor: £360,000; £184.62Tony Blair: £277,928; £142.53Cherie Booth: £250,000; £128.21Sir Ian Blair: £215,000; £110.27Ken Livingstone: £133,997; £68.72

John Clayton ● 7435d30 Comments

Seeing them all laid out like that, what kind of values do we reflect as a society? Elton John, Kate Moss, David Beckham earn more than the Prime Minister !!!!!!!! Lucien Freud.....what a pile of old degenerate twaddle he turns out.

Penny Crocker ● 7435d

Who is Lucian Freud?I don't think I know Jose Mourinho either....

John Clayton ● 7435d

A pensioner on a full state pension(2005):£82.05p per week  =  £2.19 per hour.Life's not fair, don't you think?  :-(

Gerry Tan ● 7435d

The answer to your question is - no (IMHO).Dolly Levi - "Money, pardon the expression, is like manure. It's not worth a thing unless it's spread around, encouraging young things to grow."

Sarah Felstead ● 7435d

Who IS Natasha?  What does SHE do for humanity?

Lois Westby ● 7435d

I don’t think you can compare Natasha Kaplinsky and Elton John in the same list.The BBC pays Natasha Kaplinsky agent, but Elton John surly just pays himself out of his own company money earned from Ticket, CD, Concerts sales and other ventures. If the public didn’t pay, buy, go, watch, he wouldn’t have got all the money to begin withIn the entertainment industry its get all you can today because tomorrow your gone, it’s a bit like an insurance policy.

Paul Allen ● 7435d

Well at least Jose Mourinho. produces a Football Team, Chelsea if you didn't know John, obviously not a Football fan, or was that subtle humour? Natasha Kaplinski is famous for the Gaffe about Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat, when interviewing the producer of the film version, suggested that it would make a good West-End musical. I think that got her the sack from ITN, or was it Sky News? Puts her on a par with John Prescott, but he doesn't get as much!!

Colin Vaughan ● 7435d

Lucin Freud is a crap artist

Penny Crocker ● 7435d

What about Carol Vordaman? Allegedly worth 4million, and getting £250.000. for Countdown. Plus the fee for advertising 'First Plus'where she has the gall to persuade the gullable and vunerable to get themselves furthur into debt.

Colin Vaughan ● 7435d

I don't support Chelsea or for that matter no much about Chelsea. Chelsea is owned by a Russion ISTR? What happened to good old British teams... I personally prefer the style of teams like Liverpool who are both successful in the Premiership and Europe...As for Natasha I didn't realise she came from another channel. Never saw her on ITN so maybe it was Sky as I don't watch that.

John Clayton ● 7435d

What sort of artist?

John Clayton ● 7435d

A more relevant question is why Natasha K worth £475K for reading from an autocue a few evenings a week when John Humphries gets paid £155K for preparing for and the presenting the Today programme a few mornings a week. The latter is actually a journalist rather than a presenter and as such does his own research.Maybe the £475K Natasha gets is just for 'eye candy' value. I'm sure there are many talented female journalists capable of presenting the news for a fraction of the £475K she gets from the license payer.

Toby Lovern ● 7434d

"Puts her on a par with John Prescott, but he doesn't get as much!!"he actually gets more than that when you take into account his allowances on several homes and grace & favour accomodation. The average cost of an MP is reported to be £288K a year in salary, pension and indirect benefits / allowances.

Toby Lovern ● 7434d

Unfortunately in the world of entertainment (and I'm including television news and current affairs) the chances of a woman getting on screen are virtually nil unless she is is young, more than averagely attractive and size 10 or less.  I'm not saying that these attributes are the only ones necessary but they are definitely an essential element.No wonder young girls are obsessed with their weight when the only role models they see are borderline anorexic. You really do have to be VERY slim to look slim on screen. I'm size 10 and on our choir and show videos I look porky.

Jane Salisbury ● 7434d

I agree that Natasha has been selected for her 'eye candy' appeal and I think the BBC see her as the new Jill Dando.As for her job does Natasha prepare her own material before she presents the news? I would have thought there would be quite a bit of preparation.How many times a day is she on TV? I think it's just daytime news rather than news 24...

John Clayton ● 7434d

"Puts her on a par with John Prescott, but he doesn't get as much!!"I think Natasha Kaplinsky job is much more realistic than anything John Prescott does. He lost his portfolio after his affair with his secretary. I was surprised that he then kept his salary and associated allowances....

John Clayton ● 7434d

Its only the six o'clock spot John. Sophie Raworth was to have got it, possibly at far less cost, but I suppose she was not 'show bizz' enough. Maybe if everyone boycotts the 6pm slot she will be demoted to daytime TV.

Colin Vaughan ● 7434d

I can't see the justification of that salary based on just one slot per day. That's easy money...She does do other things like working with Terry Wogan on charity events. I wonder if her salary includes these extra activities for the BBC or will she get extra for that?

John Clayton ● 7434d

... don't you suspect that time will tell, why?

Sarah Felstead ● 7434d

I'd get my snout in the trough too except it's so crowded that there's no room!!!!

Rosco White ● 7434d

I totally agree.The Telegrph web page is reporting:"A BBC mole leaked salary details of its biggest stars last month, prompting reports that Jeremy Paxman earns more than £1 million for presenting Newsnight and University Challenge. Huw Edwards, who reads The Ten o'clock News on BBC1 is reported to earn £250,000 a year, while Fiona Bruce earns £150,000 for reading the news, but another £250,000 for presenting other programmes, including Crimewatch."I wonder what the BBC wages bill is per year and what percentage of our licence fee goes on salaries?

John Clayton ● 7434d

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/4283086/BBC-workers-get-3000-relocation-packages-for-carpets-and-curtains.htmlGood bye West London (including Ealing), Hello Salford.I certainly wouldn't open a soft furnishings shop in our neighbourhood.

Alan Brainsby ● 6464d

Jose Mourinho is worth every penny :)

Trizia Fiorellino ● 6462d

Is he on the BBC's payroll? :)

Alan Brainsby ● 6462d

I wish he was still on Chelsea's!!!!

Trizia Fiorellino ● 6462d

Natasha? On a scale of one to ten I'd give her one ;-)

Al Stuart ● 6459d

Anyone who thinks being a news reader is simply looking good and reading an autocue are very much mistaken.

Verification Required ● 6454d

I suppose correct inflexion and not laughing when there is sad news such as a cat getting run over(Reginald Bosanquet) do come into it.However the extension of the news into a half-hour or hour  long show is something else. The questioning of individuals is best left to professional interrogators in the relevant subject.I also despise the conversation, almost private, between those in the studio and those on location along the lines of - Hello L (location), what's occurring? Is it bad?Hello S (studio), absolutely.Don't get me started on word mis-use such as absolutely (exactly or correct) or devastated (distraught). Of course weather forecasters are a totally separate horror story.

Alan Brainsby ● 6454d

Who'd a thought it, Natasha using the alias Nigel?

Al Stuart ● 6454d

Also noticed some of those introduced as being on location can be hundreds of miles away from the talked about news incident and equally unknowing!(Al- a good theme for the Daily Mash)?

Robert Darke ● 6454d