Christopher Bland

Who is Christopher Bland?

Sir Christopher Buchan Bland is a British businessman and politician. He was Deputy Chairman of the Independent Television Authority, which was renamed the Independent Broadcasting Authority in the same year, and former Chairman of London Weekend Television and of the Board of Governors of the BBC, when he took up a position as Chairman of British Telecommunications plc. He left his position with BT in September 2007. Before leaving BT, he became Chairman of the Royal Shakespeare Company, in 2004.

Bland has also held a wide range of concurrent Chairmanships and Directorships, including Chairmanship of Century Hutchinson Group, the Edinburgh-based Canongate Publishing, the National Freight Corporation, known as NFC PLC, and Life Sciences International PLC, and Directorship of National Provident, and Storehouse PLC among others.

Bland has a long-standing interest in the cultivation of good wines, and in 1995 bought a 19th Century house with a large wine cellar containing numbered alcoves to accommodate 1,000 bottles of Bordeaux, 100 bottles of Champagne, and 120 bins of white Burgundy.