Several renowned BBC presenters have declined to be the presenter accused of paying a minor tens of thousands of pounds for pornographic images.
Following the claims, the BBC has acknowledged that an anonymous male broadcaster has been suspended, while social media has been filled with spectacular speculations and conjecture.
The anonymous person is accused of paying a minor more than £35,000 for the imagery beginning when the teen was 17 years old.
The company has contacted the police and stated that a male member of staff has been suspended, and the corporation will meet with the Metropolitan Police later today ‘to address the incident,’ according to BBC News.
The BBC stated that it has been investigating a complaint since May, when it was first made aware of it, and that further claims of a “different type” were brought to its notice on Thursday.
Due to social media speculations, a number of high-profile celebrities have been obliged to disavow any participation.
Rylan Clark
Rylan Clark has categorically denied being the BBC broadcaster accused of bribing a kid for sexually graphic photographs.
‘Not sure why my names floating about but re that story in The Sun- that ain’t me babe,’ he posted on Twitter.
‘I’m currently filming a show in Italy for the BBC, so take my name out ya mouths,’ he added, in a nod to Will Smith at last year’s Oscars, when he told host Chris Rock to keep wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s name ‘out of his f***ing mouth’.
Rylan, who has been working for the BBC since 2018 on series including Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two, made his comments after commenting on a photo of the newspaper’s front page that was posted before of publication.
Late on Friday night, Rylan wrote on The Sun’s post: ‘It’s s*** like this that makes Twitter wild, I’m filming a new show in Italy for the BBC.’
Jeremy Vine
Jeremy Vine, who hosted Newsnight from 1999 to 2002 before moving on to anchor Points of View from 2008 to 2018, has denied any involvement.
He responded to tweets trying to identify him as the BBC presenter, saying: ‘This is seriously defamatory of me. I have screenshotted it and the retweets and passed it to a lawyer. There is no truth WHATSOEVER in what you are saying.’
He added elsewhere: ‘They are completely and utterly untrue.’
Jeremy currently broadcasts The Jeremy Vine Show on Channel 5 during the week, in addition to a midday BBC2 radio show.
In a separate tweet, he wrote: ‘Just to say I’m very much looking forward to hosting my radio show on Monday – whoever the ‘BBC presenter’ in the news is, I have the same message for you as Rylan did earlier: it certainly ain’t me.’
Gary Lineker
Match of the Day host Gary Lineker also denied any involvement in the claims.
He wrote on Twitter: ‘Hate to disappoint the haters but it’s not me.’
Nihal Arthanayake
Nihal Arthanayake, presenter of BBC Radio 5 Live, has also been obliged to reply to suspicions about the identity of the nameless presenter.
He tweeted: ‘I’m off air because of the tennis. Like I am every year. Back on air 17th July.’
Nicky Campbell
After trolls named him in connection with the claims, broadcaster and journalist Nicky Campbell reacted, revealing he had been in contact with the Met Police about the speculation.
He shared a screenshot on Twitter with the Metropolitan Police logo and the words: ‘Thank you for contacting the Metropolitan Police Service to report your crime.’
He added: ‘I think it’s important to take a stand. There’s just too many of these people on social media. Thanks for your support friends.’
Source My Celebrity Life.
