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Donald Trump’s lawyers will move to force Tim Davie to testify as part of the US president’s $10bn (£7.5bn) defamation lawsuit against the BBC, The Telegraph can reveal.
The former director-general, who resigned over the Panorama editing scandal, would be questioned under oath about claims the programme had spliced together separate sections of Mr Trump’s speech on Jan 6 2021 to make it appear he had urged supporters to storm the US Capitol.
In November, The Telegraph revealed that Panorama had spliced separate parts of Mr Trump’s speech in a way that suggested he had urged his supporters to “walk down to the Capitol ... and I’ll be there with you” and “fight like hell”.
In fact, he said he wanted supporters to demonstrate peacefully.
Mr Trump’s lawyers responded by accusing the BBC of trying to put the president on trial for the riot, defaming him in the process and causing him reputational damage.
A source close to the case told The Telegraph that Mr Trump’s legal team was prepared to travel to London to depose Mr Davie, who stood down over the scandal last November, as part of its case.
The source said: “We’re prepared to do it wherever they make them available. We will make arrangements with the BBC’s counsel to coordinate that deposition; whether it takes place in the United States or the UK is really not that significant for us.”
A US subpoena would not normally be enough to compel Mr Davie to give evidence if he declined to do so voluntarily.
Mr Trump’s lawyers could instead ask the US court to issue a formal request from the High Court in London. If the High Court approved the request, Mr Davie would generally be forced to comply.
Mr Davie blamed “enemies” of the BBC for whipping up the furore that engulfed the corporation, declaring the broadcaster “the very best of society”.
Mr Trump is understood to be heavily invested in the case, and his eagerness to pursue litigation has not wavered even as the BBC has requested his phone records and private schedules from around the time of the Jan 6 riot.
On Tuesday, a federal magistrate judge in Florida ruled that the president must hand over detailed financial information relating to brands, properties and businesses to prove his case for damages.
However, she did not give the broadcaster free rein on what government and investigative records it wanted to pull into discovery, the pre-trial phase where opposing parties formally exchange relevant evidence.
Mr Trump’s lawyers had previously resisted requests for such documents and claimed they amounted to a “fishing expedition” by the BBC.
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The source said: “Since the filing of this suit, the president’s resolve has not wavered, and as he has made abundantly clear, he seeks to hold those accountable who have continued to either defame him or portray him in a false light, BBC included.”
The president’s legal team dropped parts of the lawsuit last week targeting the commercial and production arms of the BBC, but said Mr Trump would continue his lawsuit against the main public-service broadcaster.
The BBC has apologised for the documentary but has promised to fight Mr Trump’s lawsuit. Lawyers for the broadcaster are seeking to have the case dismissed altogether.
A trial date has been set for February 2027 in Florida.
