Tess Daly and Vernon Kay have become ambassadors for Nobu’s global hotels and restaurants, a move that has reignited internal debate at the BBC over presenters earning significant sums from commercial endorsements while holding high-profile roles at the corporation.
The couple’s new partnership, revealed as they posed with Nobu’s head chef at the London restaurant, will add to other paid promotions and lucrative side gigs that have drawn attention from some colleagues. Vernon Kay’s BBC Radio 2 mid-morning show pays him about £395,000 a year and Tess Daly’s salary is understood to exceed £400,000, though strict publication rules for BBC Studios productions mean her exact pay is not publicly listed. Together their combined pay is estimated to be about £1 million a year.
The value of the Nobu ambassadorial role has not been disclosed. BBC staff who spoke to the Daily Mail said some colleagues are unhappy that front-of-house talent can supplement their BBC incomes with commercial work, a practice they say would have been restricted in the past. "They are paid so much by the BBC, yet they are allowed to earn even more outside it," one insider said. "This wasn’t allowed in the past, but the BBC appears to have relaxed its rules so that the likes of Tess and Vernon are allowed to do this now."
Historically, BBC guidelines discouraged presenters from endorsing third-party products or services to avoid blurring editorial content and advertising and to preserve public trust. Those rules have been relaxed in recent years, and the corporation permits some commercial activity by staff, subject to approval and transparency requirements. BBC spokespeople have previously said presenters are responsible for ensuring any outside work complies with editorial guidelines and conflict-of-interest rules.
Daly and Kay have undertaken a series of commercial partnerships in recent years. Daly has appeared as the face of the WellWoman range for vitamin supplements firm Vitabiotics, collaborated on jewellery promotions with television shopping channel QVC and worked with travel firm All Inclusive Collection. She has also promoted her swimwear label Naia Beach on social media and featured in a Marks & Spencer Christmas campaign with Kay. Kay has posted clothing promotions for retailers, including outfits from Marks & Spencer, and broadcasts to an audience of nearly seven million weekly listeners on Radio 2.
Both presenters have attended a number of high-profile events as guests of brands and promoters. The couple have been VIPs at Nobu events domestically and abroad, including at the chain’s Dubai venue. Kay attended the Super Bowl in New Orleans in February, the Wimbledon men’s singles final accompanied by his daughter, and the Masters in April. He has been visible at major music events as well, including DJ Pete Tong’s concert at the Royal Albert Hall and Oasis’s reunion shows at Heaton Park and Wembley. Kay has said he paid for some concert tickets himself.
Some junior BBC staff told the Daily Mail they feel held to stricter standards than the corporation’s most prominent names. "We’re all held to the highest standards, every day, but the biggest names are allowed to have extra incomes, helped very much by their high-profile roles on the BBC," one source said. "They have a lovely life, as well as being paid an absolute fortune, but then they use their fame to get all the perks and extras the rest of us can only dream of."
Daly and Kay have worked together in public roles for many years; they married in 2003 and have two daughters. Daly is due to return to co-present Strictly Come Dancing for its 21st season alongside Claudia Winkleman. Channel-facing staff and audiences continue to debate where the line should be drawn between permissible outside earnings and activity that could undermine the perceived impartiality or integrity of BBC presenters.
BBC policy continues to require disclosure and pre-approval for most commercial work by on-air talent, and the corporation says it maintains oversight of conflicts of interest. Critics and some staff argue the arrangements could nonetheless create tensions about fairness and public perception, while supporters note the work is lawful and that many presenters supplement broadcast pay through approved outside engagements.