BBC under fire for tearing down EU flags during Beethoven’s Ninth

Audience members at the Royal Albert Hall who waved EU flags during the finale of Beethoven’s ninth symphony last night were ordered by ushers to take them down.

A Slipped Disc correspondent writes: ‘RAH staff came in through the piece multiple times to tell people to remove them. It was a total distraction to the performers.’

‘It was an abysmal way to deal with a political statement at a classical concert; it turned attention away from the performance. There was no waving of the flags or anything that might be construed as distracting.’

EU flag being unfurled over rail

Another SD reader points out that it was the only EU flags that were removed.

The ushers had no issue with Welsh flags – waved for the BBC National Orchestra of Wales – or any other emblems.

During the Proms season, RAH staff act under instruction from the BBC.

The BBC is anxious about allowing pro-EU sentiment at the Proms ever since it got into hot water over Daniel Barenboim’s speech. Now the BBC has disrupted a Proms concert in order to cover its own back.

UPDATE: Who organised EU flags at BBC Proms?