Patricia Hodgson

Dame Patricia Anne Hodgson, DBE (born 19 January 1947) is a broadcasting executive and competition regulator. She is a board member of the Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation having served as Chairman of Ofcom from 2014 to 2017, having succeeded Dame Colette Bowe in April 2014,She is also a trustee of the Policy Exchange and is Chair of the School Teachers' Review Body. From 2006 to 2012 she was Principal of Newnham College, Cambridge.

Hodgson was educated at Brentwood High School for Girls and Newnham College, Cambridge. She joined the BBC as a producer and founder-member of the distance learning team for the Open University. Between 1970 and 2000 she worked in a variety of positions, moving from production onto the executive Board (see below). She served as a part-time Member of the Mergers and Monopolies Commission between 1993–99 and returned as a non-executive Member of the Competition Commission (the successor body) between 2004–2011. From September 2000 to the end of 2003, Hodgson was Chief Executive of the Independent Television Commission and led the organisation into the integrated telecoms regulator, Ofcom, where she was Chairman from 2014–2017.

Hodgson’s non-executive roles include Director of GCapMedia plc (2004–06), member of the BBC Trust (2006–2011), Chair of the Higher Education Regulation Review Group (2004–06), Member of the Higher Education Funding Council for England (2005–2011), Member of The Wellcome Trust (2004–08), Member of the Committee on Standards in Public Life (2004–08) and of the Statistics Commission (2000–06). Upon leaving Newnham in 2012, she became Chair of Ofcom and Chair of the School Teachers’ Review Body.

Hodgson's first job upon leaving university was working as a desk officer for the Conservative Research Department. From 1974 to 1977 she was a Conservative member of Haringey Borough Council . From 1975 to 1976 she was also Chair of the right wing think-tank Bow Group.

Hodgson worked in production between 1970 and 1983 on arts programmes for the Open University, as a producer on Tonight and briefly as a presenter on the Today programme. She became Deputy Secretary of the BBC in 1983, quickly moving to become Secretary. She was subsequently Head of Policy (1987–1992) and then Director of Policy (1993–2000) a main board position.As Director of Policy & Planning, Hodgson developed the original concept for the BBC’s international commercial television channels, including BBC World, now BBC World News.

Hodgson was responsible for Charter and Licence negotiations in 1995 and 2000 and also led the team which planned the launch of digital and online UK services between 1995 and 2000.In 2006 she returned to the BBC as a member of the new governing body, the BBC Trust, which took over from the Board of Governors on 1 January 2007. In 2010 she was appointed to a second term on the Trust. After being runner-up for both Vice Chairman and Chairman of the Trust in 2011, Hodgson stood down to take up a role on the board of media regulator Ofcom, where she became Chairman.

Hodgson was made a CBE in 1995 and a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 2004.She is an Honorary Fellow of Newnham College, Cambridge, and holds honorary doctorates from City University, London, and the University of Essex.