Anchor
BP removes chair Albert Manifold amid leadership churn
Money MovesBoard ousts chair after eight months, citing governance and conduct concerns as strategic reset continues
May 26th, 2026: Board removes Manifold; Tyler named interim chairNew here? Follow stories to track developments over time. Create a free account to get updates when stories you care about change.
Overview
Updated May 26BP's board removed chair Albert Manifold on Tuesday, eight months after he took the role. London-listed shares fell as much as 9%. Directors cited serious concerns about governance standards, oversight and conduct.
The ouster is BP's third change at the top in seven months. CEO Murray Auchincloss left in December and Meg O'Neill took over in April. BP is mid-pivot back toward oil and gas, and the chair seat now sits vacant while the board hunts for a permanent successor.
Why it matters
Three leadership changes in seven months have left BP without a permanent chair as it executes a major pivot back toward oil and gas.
Questions about this story
Free account needed to ask — your question is kept and asked for you right after sign-up. Answers are public.
No questions yet — be the first to ask.
Key Indicators
~8 months
Manifold's tenure as chair
Appointed October 2025, removed May 26, 2026.
9%
Share price drop on removal
BP's London-listed shares fell as much as 9% on the news.
82%
AGM support for Manifold
A rare protest vote in April 2026; chairs typically clear 95%.
4
CEOs in six years
Counts Bob Dudley, Bernard Looney, Murray Auchincloss and Meg O'Neill.
3
Top leadership changes in 7 months
CEO Auchincloss out, O'Neill in, and now chair Manifold out.
Related Media
BP board removes chair Albert Manifold over governance concerns
BP removes chair Albert Manifold after claims of bullying
BP removes chair Albert Manifold over 'serious' governance and conduct concerns | BP | The Guardian
1.0K views
1:15
BP ousts Chair Albert Manifold over conduct issues
Reuters
291 views
0:24
BP Ousts Chairman Citing Governance and Conduct Issues
NTD
Images from Openverse under Creative Commons licenses. Videos from YouTube.
Voices
Curated perspectives — historical figures and your fellow readers.
Play
Exploring all sides of a story is often best achieved with Play.
Most of these play right now — no account needed. Sign up to save scores, keep a streak, and unlock Debate and Predict.
Log in
Sign Up
Higher or Lower
A number from this story, against one from elsewhere in the news — guess which is bigger, then keep the chain going. 5 rounds, 3 strikes; a miss costs a strike and resets your streak.
Example
Anchor
EU tariff revenue
$52B
Big for this kind of number
Mystery
Pentagon AI contract
?
Round 1
Streak: 0
Mystery
?
Keyboard: ↓/L lower · ↑/H higher
0 pts
Best streak: 0 · Rounds: 0
0 points — sign up to put that on the leaderboard.
Now try on this story
Timeline
BP removes chair Albert Manifold amid leadership churn
Order five events from this story, oldest at top. Each in the right slot scores 1 — neighbours within one slot count too. Your previous result — green ✓ for exact slots, yellow ~ for off by one. Cards now in true chronological order.
Loading puzzle…
Tap 💡 Free hint to lock the oldest into slot 1 — that leaves just four to order. Type pills are clues.
0/5
Exact slot
0/5
Within 1
Sign up to save your score and track a streak across stories.
Now try on this story
Connections
Sixteen names from the news. Find the four hidden groups of four. Four mistakes max.
Loading today's puzzle…
0/4 groups
Mistakes
Sign up to keep a daily streak — a new puzzle lands every day.
Now try on this story
Exit debate?
Your progress in this debate will be lost.
How it works
- 1 Two AI personas square off on this story.
- 2 You predict who'll win each round — correct picks earn XP.
- 3 One crossfire question is yours to fire. Pick it carefully.
Couldn't generate a topic
Select Your Champions
Choose one persona for each side of the debate
DEBATE TOPIC
Choose personas with different perspectives for a more dynamic debate.
SIDE A (PRO)
Select debater for this side:
No debate personas available right now.
SIDE B (CON)
Select debater for this side:
No debate personas available right now.
VS
Get ready to make your prediction...
Round of
Claim
Evidence
Stakes
Crossfire Answer
Closing Statement
Claim
Evidence
Stakes
Crossfire Answer
Closing Statement
Your Crossfire Question
Generating arguments...
Who's Got This Round?
Make your prediction before the referee scores
The referee scores both sides on
Correct predictions earn +20 XP
· Press 1 or 2 to pick
Evidence
40%
Logic
30%
Detail
20%
Style
10%
Round Results
Your Pick
Not this time
(%)
Overall Score
/10
Your Pick
Not this time
(%)
Overall Score
/10
Set the Crossfire
Pick the question both personas must answer in the final round
Crafting crossfire questions...
Choosing a question earns +10 XP crossfire bonus
🏆
Total XP Earned
Cred Change
Predictions
Debate Oracle! You called every round!
Sharp Instincts! You know your debaters!
The Coin Flip Strategist! Perfectly balanced!
The Contrarian! Bold predictions!
Inverse Genius! Try betting the opposite next time!
XP Breakdown
Base completion
+20 XP
Rounds played ( rounds x 5 XP)
+ XP
Correct predictions ( correct x 20 XP)
+ XP
Crossfire bonus
+10 XP
Accuracy
%
Prediction History
Round
You picked:
✓
✗
Now try on this story
Keep debating to level up your credibility and unlock achievements
People Involved
Albert Manifold
Former chair, BP plc
Removed from chair and director roles with immediate effect, May 26, 2026
Ian Tyler
Interim chair, BP plc
Appointed interim chair, May 26, 2026
Meg O'Neill
CEO, BP plc
Took over as CEO April 1, 2026
Murray Auchincloss
Former CEO, BP plc
Stepped down December 18, 2025; advisory role through 2026
Organizations Involved
BP plc
Energy major
Searching for permanent chair; mid-strategic reset under new CEO
British oil and gas major, one of the world's largest energy companies by revenue.
Elliott Management
Activist hedge fund
Holds activist stake in BP since early 2025
US activist hedge fund that has pressed BP for deeper cost cuts and a sharper focus on oil and gas.
Timeline
February 2025 May 2026
8 events
Latest: May 26th, 2026 · 4 months ago
Tap a bar to jump to that date
-
Board removes Manifold; Tyler named interim chair
Latest GovernanceBoard votes unanimously to remove Manifold over governance and conduct concerns. Shares drop as much as 9%.
-
Manifold draws weak AGM support
Shareholder voteManifold re-elected with about 82% of the vote, a soft showing for a sitting chair. Climate proposals also rebuffed.
-
Meg O'Neill becomes CEO
GovernanceFormer Woodside Energy chief takes over BP. First woman to run one of the global oil majors.
-
CEO Murray Auchincloss steps down
GovernanceAuchincloss leaves after less than two years. Carol Howle named interim CEO. Meg O'Neill announced as permanent successor.
-
Manifold takes the chair seat
GovernanceManifold formally succeeds Helge Lund as BP chair.
-
Albert Manifold named as incoming chair
GovernanceFormer CRH chief executive named to replace Lund. BP cites his record running a large industrial group.
-
Chair Helge Lund announces departure
GovernanceBP says Lund, who championed the prior green push, will step down in 2026. A search for a new chair begins.
-
BP announces strategic reset
StrategyCEO Murray Auchincloss scraps prior green-energy targets and pivots BP back toward oil and gas under pressure from Elliott Management.
Historical Context
3 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.
July 2010
Tony Hayward exits BP after Deepwater Horizon (2010)
BP CEO Tony Hayward stepped down three months after the Deepwater Horizon rig explosion killed 11 workers and spilled around 4 million barrels into the Gulf of Mexico. The board pushed him out after a string of public missteps, including his 'I'd like my life back' remark. Bob Dudley, an American, replaced him.
Then
BP took a $32 billion charge against the spill and sold tens of billions in assets to fund cleanup and claims.
Now
The disaster reshaped BP's executive turnover pattern. The company has now changed CEO four times in roughly 15 years.
Why this matters now
BP has a long pattern of crisis-driven leadership turnover. Manifold's removal extends that pattern into the chair seat.
November 2018
Carlos Ghosn ousted as Nissan chair (2018)
Nissan's board removed Carlos Ghosn as chair days after his arrest in Tokyo on charges of underreporting income and misusing company funds. Ghosn had run the Renault-Nissan alliance for nearly two decades and dominated both boards.
Then
Ghosn was held in Tokyo for months. Nissan booked governance failings publicly and overhauled its board structure.
Now
Ghosn eventually fled Japan in a music-equipment case and the Renault-Nissan alliance frayed. The case became a reference point for boards confronting a dominant chair.
Why this matters now
Like Ghosn, Manifold was described by colleagues as exerting executive-level control from the chair seat. Boards now move faster when they conclude a chair has overstepped.
November 2019
Steve Easterbrook fired by McDonald's (2019)
McDonald's fired CEO Steve Easterbrook for a consensual relationship with an employee, calling it a violation of company policy and 'poor judgment.' Later evidence prompted the company to claw back his exit package.
Then
Easterbrook left with a severance package the board later sued to recover.
Now
McDonald's recovered tens of millions in compensation. The case became a template for boards acting fast on conduct issues by top officers.
Why this matters now
Boards have grown quicker to remove senior figures over conduct, even when underlying business performance is intact.