BBC backs down on Barrymore memoirs

The BBC has backed down on plans to publish Michael Barrymore's memoirs after Greg Dyke intervened.

In a late-night telephone call with the chief executive of BBC Worldwide, publisher of Running Away from Myself, the director general decided to postpone publication "indefinitely".

The corporation reacted after Essex detectives were revealed to be investigating Mr Barrymore, 50, for perjury – a crime that carries a maximum penalty of seven years.

The autobiography, for which the BBC was said to be paying the entertainer £500,000, was due to be published next month. It was to include details of the night Stuart Lubbock, 31, was found dead in a pool at Mr Barrymore's home in Roydon, Essex, after a party in March last year.

An inquest last week failed to ascertain exactly how Mr Lubbock, who had two children, died. Mr Lubbock's father, Terry, called for the book to be scrapped, insisting it would only "rake up" details of his son's injuries after a "very traumatic" inquest.

The BBC initially stood by its original decision, insisting the book had been commissioned before Mr Lubbock's death and contained nothing sensational. Its climbdown was announced yesterday morning after Mr Dyke's conversation with Rupert Gavin, BBC Worldwide's chief executive.

A BBC insider said: "Rupert Gavin has been in the United States ... and would not have seen the kind of press coverage published from the inquest. Late yesterday he was made aware of it and he and Greg discussed it last night and decided what course of action to take. They decided there are things which are obviously unclear in terms of the legal situation that need clarification."

In a formal statement, the corporation announced the move to "postpone indefinitely", adding: "A decision about whether the book will ever be published will be taken at a stage when reported legal issues, including those surrounding the inquest into the death of Stuart Lubbock, have been clarified."

John Whittingdale, shadow Culture Secretary, said: "Most people are shocked that Mr Barrymore should feel it appropriate to publish a book so soon after the death of Stuart Lubbock, particularly when he refused to give a full account of what occurred at his party to the coroner. For the BBC to have published it would have been outrageous and would have represented an endorsement by what is still a national institution dedicated to public service."

The Essex and Thurrock coroner, Caroline Beasley-Murray, recorded an open verdict on Friday after complaining that none of the party guests had offered a full explanation of events in the early hours of 31 March last year. Mr Lubbock, a meat factory worker from Harlow, had alcohol, ecstasy and cocaine in his system and had suffered serious internal injures, which some pathologists said were consistent with sexual assault.

A spokesman for Essex Police said the coroner had referred the case and allegations of perjury were being investigated. Mr Barrymore refused to answer questions on the use of drugs in his house during the inquest, though he denied giving Mr Lubbock ecstasy or rubbing cocaine into his gums against his will.

His former wife, Cheryl, has claimed he lied at the inquest. He could swim, despite statements to the contrary, she said, and she also alleged he had rubbed cocaine on the gums of other people.