It would be fair to call it the transfer of the century. No-one saw it coming and, at first glance, it is absolutely the right move for ITV and a nightmare for the BBC.
This is a tremendous coup for the ITV board. Hats off to them. We doubted their recruitment process and their ability to lure a halfway competent executive into a troubled organisation - but they have.
For the BBC it is the loss of a key figure in licence fee negotiations. It is possible that Grade was frustrated by the Government's bargaining and feared a far lower settlement than bid for.
He may also have been frustrated by the separation of powers that was being introduced at the BBC between the Trust and the executive.
His departure completely caught the BBC unawares. He had arrived to steady the BBC ship after the trauma of the Hutton Report.
The story is rumoured to have been leaked to Jeff Randall by the Government. It had been due to be announced tomorrow (Tuesday) morning. Could someone have been annoyed with the BBC over the Bounty on Blair story?
For Grade this is a fantastic opportunity. Most people assume that the BBC chairmanship is one last great job before retirement.
But Grade has leapt to a much more challenging - and lucrative - opportunity. The City will welcome the move because Grade knows about business and he knows about showbusiness. Watch the ITV share price on our site leap tomorrow. And the creative side of ITV will be joyous - here is a man who understands programme makers and broadcasting.
