The new plan comes at a time when the BBC is bullish about its prospects and how it will compete with the new digital giants such as Amazon and in particular Netflix. It has enjoyed recent successes with programmes such as Bodyguard, A Very English Scandal and Dynasties and believes that similar high ratings will be generated by the fifth series of Line of Duty, Gentlemen Jack, and His Dark Materials in drama; Strictly Come Dancing; and RuPaul’s Drag Race; and One Planet: Seven Worlds and the Our Planet Matters season for factual.

It also comes on the back of announcing that it was teaming with ITV to launch later in 2019 a British version of the BritBox streaming video-on-demand service that the firms currently offer in the US.

Yet reinvention was also a key topic laid out in the 2020 plan. While this includes more content aimed at younger audiences, it also covers what innovation is taking place in how the BBC delivers content. The corporation has also proposed improvements to iPlayer, which will require a decision from UK broadcast regulator Ofcom.

Commenting on the announcement of the annual plan, BBC Director General Tony Hall said: “Today, the BBC enhances the lives of almost everyone in the UK. Around 44 million British people use us every day – more than 90% of the adult population every week. All broadcasters face the challenges of a fast-changing media landscape. The BBC can meet those challenges and succeed in the future, just as we have succeeded in the past. We will achieve success by continuing to place British creativity at the heart of our program making.

“Our ambition is to deliver the very best, most distinctive, British content of any broadcaster. The string of hits and award-winning programmes of the past twelve months shows that we can deliver. We will build on that in the months ahead to meet the rising expectations of the public.”