It's been a shocking few days for the BBC revelations with news that employees on six shows, including the flagship programmes Children in Need and Comic Relief, misled viewers over TV phone-ins turned a serious incident into a full-blown crisis.

Senior figures privately accept that further examples of sharp practices and corner-cutting will emerge as the BBC examines over a million hours of output going back two years.

Staff were 'angry' and 'appalled' after Thompson spoke last Wednesday, according to insiders, furious that the actions of a few had plunged the corporation into what some insist is its biggest crisis since the Hutton inquiry. 'After everything we've gone through recently this was a real head-in-hands moment for Mark Thompson,' said once source.

Esther Rantzen, who with Terry Wogan co-presented the first Children in Need in its current format, said: 'Mark Thompson was absolutely correct to take this very seriously indeed, because although these incidents are nothing to do with the Children in Need charity itself, people have to be able to trust the BBC. That's what the public have been able to rely on in the past and we've got to ensure they also can in the future.'

The BBC's announcement late on Friday that former executive Will Wyatt will conduct an independent inquiry into the Queen controversy will go some way towards reassuring the BBC's critics - and its viewers - that it is serious about restoring public trust in the organisation.

A separate inquiry into the phone-in incidents is also under way after the director-general told the BBC Trust about the latest lapses last Wednesday afternoon, and the Trust's chairman Sir Michael Lyons has given it a year to put its house in order.

Some inside the corporation fear it could take longer than that to repair its tarnished reputation. Other senior industry figures - like Peter Bazalgette, chief creative officer of Big Brother creator Endemol - insist that in a TV industry afflicted by a crisis of trust between broadcasters and their viewers: 'The BBC is far better than many. It is certainly not the worst offender.'

The fact that the BBC is funded by the taxpayer means it must meet higher standards than its competitors. In an interview which is due to be broadcast today shadow media secretary Jeremy Hunt tells ITV1's News Hour: 'The reason that we pay [the licence fee] is because we want the BBC to be the gold standard in British broadcasting.'

Many still believe that the most serious error was made the week before last when a 'promo' for the documentary about the Queen, made by independent production house RDF, was cut to imply that she had walked out of a shoot following a frosty exchange with the celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz.

BBC1 controller Peter Fincham, who commissioned the show, subsequently discovered that the footage of the Queen walking out had actually been filmed as she arrived, but by then he had flagged up the incident to a group of excited journalists at a press briefing.

The promo for the Queen is a classic example of TV trickery.  While senior figures accept that apologies and public displays of contrition are necessary, some would also like to see executives mount a robust defence of the corporation.

That may happen on Tuesday, when deputy director-general Mark Byford and chief operating officer Caroline Thomson are hauled before the House of Commons media select committee to be questioned about the affair.

This is a very high profile case that I guess will feature in the media for many more months to come, let's hope the BBC can start to build on its reputation again and fill us all with confidence by producing 'real and 'true' documentaries and shows.

It’s well done to Cancer Research UK for topping the NGO Watch (Non Governmental Organisations) for the second month running, after capitalising on the smoking ban.

The conclusions of a Cancer Research study generated 280 mentions in news items in June as the England-wide ban was about to be implemented.

While many in the hospitality trade reportedly feared that the smoking ban would hurt business, the study suggested that one in five families would go out more to pubs and restaurants.  And, as a mum with a toddler, I completely agree, it opens up a whole new world for us parents!

Cancer Research director of tobacco control Jean King said: ‘Smokefree legislation is being brought in to protect the workers and the public… and it also looks like it will be some good news for both family outings and the hospitality trade.’

Under the 2006 Health Act, mirroring similar legislation in Scotland, Wales and Ireland, it will be illegal to smoke in virtually all enclosed public spaces in England. Breaking the law will become a criminal offence punishable by a £50 fixed penalty fine. Landlords, restaurateurs and employers failing to prevent smoking on their premises could be fined up to £2,500, but will normally avoid a criminal record.

The Government estimates that the ban will cost £1.6 billion, but says it will bring a net benefit to the nation of up to £2.1 billion, including an annual saving of £100 million to the NHS as a result of a 1.7 per cent reduction in the number of smokers.

About 3.7 million workplaces will be affected, including nearly 200,000 pubs, bars and restaurants. Many are investing in special "non-substantially enclosed" outdoor smoking shelters.

And the Evening Post reports that Bristol pubs are on a mission to hunt down the smokers and provide a place of sanctuary for them too! More than 100 pubs in Bristol have been highlighted on a new website as 'smoker-friendly'. The Smokers Welcome website has been set up by the tobacco industry to promote places where smokers can light up in beer gardens.

Among the firms behind it is Bristol-based Imperial Tobacco.

Imperial spokesman Simon Evans said: "We have experience from the bans in Scotland and Ireland, which came into force earlier, so we know what the impact on smokers will be in England.

"What happened in both those countries was there was an initial dip in the consumption of cigarettes but then the blow to the industry softened.

"Pubs have found that if they continue to offer facilities for customers who smoke, they find the customers will continue to go there.

"So this website simply points out those places where facilities are provided for smokers to light up in comfort."

Imperial Tobacco, along with the other backers, fellow UK manufacturers British American Tobacco and Gallaher Limited, approached bars to see if they wanted their details posted on the website. Mr Evans said: "We have been very dependent on our own employees to spot the pubs where people can smoke.

"Smokers can get on to the website and put down their experiences too."

The site shows the pub's location, address and telephone number plus features such as whether they have a smoking shelter, the number of outside seats and if they have a heater outside.

And for any of you desperate for a legal cigarette and a pint in the open air, why not log on to: www. smokerswelcome.co.uk

I’m having a “green PR” and corporate social responsibility (CSR) focus this week and was impressed to read in the weekend’s Observer that Ikea is raising the bar to become the country's first major retailer to completely abandon traditional plastic bags.

This week Ikea, which has 15 stores in the UK, will go 'carrier neutral' by removing all plastic bags from its stores. The retailer smoothed the way by first charging for bags, encouraging customers to opt for its reusable 'blue bags', or to stop using bags altogether.

The initiative stems from a pledge it made at last year's World Environment Day, to cut plastic bag usage from 32 million a year to 12 million. It is not alone in tackling the area. Marks & Spencer aims to cut use by a third in three years and all the major supermarkets are promoting 'bag for life' schemes.

Meanwhile the Mail on Sunday reports on the green battle up in the skies, as aircraft giant Boeing unveiled the first of a new generation of hi-tech passenger super-jets that aim to take the stress out of air travel. The sleek, swooping-winged 787 'Dreamliner' promises quieter and "greener" journeys that also leave passengers arriving more refreshed thanks to better air quality, bigger but dimmable windows, wider seats, reduced turbulence that cuts air-sickness, and interior lighting that simulates changes in the day to reduce jet-lag.

But the launching of the 787 'Dreamliner' - whose hi-tech lightweight construction means it burns 20 per cent less fuel than a conventional plane and therefore produces less pollution - marks the start of a "little and large" battle with Europe's Airbus A380 superjumbo….watch this space!

McDonalds is also jumping on the green bandwagon too! Tired of being held up as an example of corporate greed, the fast food chain has been hitting out at critics with a series of environmental and corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives, designed to prove that it cares.

On Monday, the group announced its latest initiative: to turn its spent cooking oil into biodiesel fuel to power its vans in the UK.

This is the latest in a series of environmental and health moves. Recently, for example, the group swapped over to non-hydrogenated cooking oil in its restaurants. The menus have also moved with the times with the introduction of sustainably grown coffee, organic milk and toasted deli sandwiches.

In the UK, a sheet of paper on customers' trays shows a photo of George Horton, a 43-year-old farmer in Wiltshire and a McDonald's supplier, who produces the food they eat. Even Greenpeace, which has worked with McDonald's on making sure the soya they source from Brazil is produced by companies that do not destroy the rainforest, says the company has been progressive. Pat Venditti, forest campaigner at the charity, says: "What we've seen is that they have taken a very good leadership role in terms of how they approach environmental issues."

Others are not so sure of their initiatives. Sustain, the food and agriculture charity, for example, is concerned about its advertising to children. But the group has started to change the appearance of its cafes - so much that the staunchest critics of fast food are now in danger of inadvertently stumbling into a restyled restaurant.

The Guardian reports that Tim Lyley, a goldsmith from London, is one of the cynics. He says: "It's just a marketing thing isn't it? What McDonald's do is so ingrained in people's psyche that no amount of rebranding is going to change what people think about it." The group's financial results seem to disprove that sentiment. In April the company reported an 11% rise in global first quarter sales to $5.5bn, and a 22% increase in net profits to $762.4m. This was put down to surging sales in Europe and strong demand for new menu in the US.

Trust me, I am no fan of the Big Mac, but at least they raising the green bar and demonstrating to the world that they are pledging to make a difference for future generations.

It’d been an exciting week already in the media world, in Sunday’s Observer it reported that Richard Branson and Charles Allen, the former ITV chief, could launch a takeover of Virgin Radio, formerly owned by radio and TV presenter Chris Evans.

Apparently the two men held secret talks about a plan that would see SMG, Virgin Radio's current owner, spin off the station into a new private company which would involve Branson, Allen and SMG becoming the principle shareholders.

Virgin Radio would then link up with Branson's stations in Asia and Europe and, like them, broadcast over the internet at a time when broadband radio is taking off.

But time waits for no man and yesterday Virgin Media confirmed it has received a takeover approach following reports that private equity group Carlyle is preparing a £5.5bn bid for the cable operator.

Virgin Media has issued a statement but is ‘holding its cards close to its chest’ and is not identify the potential buyer but said "the proposal will be considered." It also confirmed that prior to the offer, the board had initiated a review with advisor Goldman Sachs regarding strategic alternatives such as the possible sale of the firm.

The statement added that Virgin Media had "not engaged in negotiations with the offeror" and said the proposal was "based on public information and is subject to various conditions". These included a due diligence examination and a period of exclusivity.

Carlyle is understood to have made a preliminary offer of between $33 (£16.50) to $35 per share for the Nasdaq-listed company. The total value of the deal, including Virgin's debt of around £6bn, would be about £11.5bn.

So watch this space! This is sure to be a bidding war of epic proportions!