BBC presenter scandal: Jeremy Vine urges unnamed star to come forward after fresh claims
Broadcaster Jeremy Vine has said he believes the BBC presenter accused of paying a teenager thousands of pounds for sexually explicit photos “should now come forward publicly”.
The BBC Radio 2 broadcaster made the remarks after a second person came forward with a complaint about the unnamed presenter.
The individual in their early 20s told BBC News they felt threatened by the presenter at the centre of the scandal that has dominated headlines.
BBC presenter latest: New claims against presenter
“These new allegations will result in yet more vitriol being thrown at perfectly innocent colleagues of his,” Vine tweeted.
“And the BBC, which I’m sure he loves, is on its knees with this.
“But it is his decision and his alone.”
Vine was one of a host of BBC presenters forced to deny being the unnamed star at the centre of scandal, tweeting that “it certainly ain’t me”.
But Richard Bacon, a former BBC radio host, disagreed – saying: “Stop it. You’re more emotionally intelligent than this. We don’t know the complexities of what his family are going through. Or what dark thoughts are running through his head. Irrespective of what he’s done wrong. You can walk off people wrongly guessing it’s you for five minutes.”
Late on Tuesday, further allegations were published by The Sun newspaper – claiming the presenter had broken lockdown rules to meet an individual in their 20s, and had sent “creepy” messages to a 17-year-old in 2018.
The latest allegations add further pressure on the BBC after it suspended the unnamed star over the weekend.
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Questions BBC haven’t answered
Presenter ‘should take control of narrative’
During a special Sky News programme on the BBC scandal, a crisis management expert advised the unnamed presenter to come forward and “take control of the narrative”.
Asked what she would tell the presenter to do, Lauren Beeching said: “Now we have the second person coming forward, without a doubt I’d now be saying ‘you just need to come clean’.
“That would be my personal advice. That’s the only way the person being accused right now can take control of the narrative.”
She said she suspects the presenter will be named “imminently” and it would be “very compelling if he can prove any slight innocence in this, if there’s any evidence he has, [he should] put it out there”.
The presenter should come clean for the sake of his colleagues, she added, as “they’re being scrutinised and it’s just not fair on them”.
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Online impact of the BBC allegations
Other BBC stars speak out
Several other stars have spoken out to distance themselves from the allegations.
BBC Radio 5 Live presenter Nicky Campbell appeared to reveal he had gone to the police after being wrongly named as the man online, posting a screenshot on Twitter which said: “Thank you for contacting the Metropolitan Police Service to report your crime.”
Match Of The Day presenter Gary Lineker tweeted: “Hate to disappoint the haters but it’s not me.”
TV and radio host Rylan Clark tweeted: “Not sure why my names floating about but re that story in the sun – that ain’t me babe.”
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Several other presenters have also been falsely named on social media but have so far decided not to issue public denials.
Entertainment
Snoop Dogg becomes co-owner and investor of Swansea football club saying it’s ‘an underdog just like me’
Police are taking no further action over Kneecap’s performance at Glastonbury.
Officers said they had investigated “comments about a forthcoming court case made during Kneecap’s performance” at the festival on 28 June.
However, after Crown Prosecution Service advice, they decided there is not enough evidence “to provide a realistic prospect of conviction for any offence”.
The Avon & Somerset force started investigating the Irish group’s show last month, as well as comments by punk-rap duo Bob Vylan.
It said they were looking at a possible public order incident.
Police said on Friday that the investigation into Bob Vylan’s performance was ongoing.
The London duo were widely criticised – and caused a BBC crisis – after leading on-stage chants of “death to the IDF” (Israel Defence Forces).
Kneecap’s Liam Og O Hannaidh appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in June. Pic: PA
Kneecap posted a photograph on Instagram, which the group said was an email from police announcing the case was being dropped.
They said their packed Glastonbury gig was a “celebration of love and solidarity” and reporting used “wildly misleading headlines”.
Fears over what Kneecap might do or say during the performance had prompted the BBC not to show it live.
The group said: “Every single person who saw our set knew no law was broken, not even close… yet the police saw fit to publicly announce they were opening an investigation.”
“There is no public apology, they don’t send this to media or post it on police accounts,” they added.
The police statement on Friday said they had informed Kneecap of their decision to drop the case.
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One of the group’s members appeared in court in June charged with a terror offence.
Liam Og O hAnnaidh is accused of displaying a flag in support of Hezbollah, a proscribed organisation in the UK, at a gig last year.
He was released on unconditional bail ahead of a second court appearance in August.
Entertainment
Tomorrowland: ‘Devastating’ blaze destroys main stage at major festival – two days before it was due to begin
A huge fire has destroyed the main stage of a major festival in Belgium – two days before it was due to begin.
Tomorrowland is a dance music event as big as Glastonbury – and David Guetta was due to perform.
Footage showed flames and thick plumes of black smoke engulfing the stage and spreading to nearby woodland on Wednesday.
The fire gutted the main stage
Fire crews attempt to bring the blaze under control
The annual festival in the town of Boom, north of Brussels, is one of the biggest in Europe and attracts about 400,000 people over two consecutive weekends.
It is famous for its immersive and elaborate designs and attracts big names within dance music – including Guetta, best known for tracks When Love Takes Over and Titanium.
Dutch DJs Martin Garrix and Charlotte de Witte were also due to perform, along with the likes of Swedish House Mafia, Eric Prydz and Alok.
Black smoke could be seen rising into the sky
The festival’s website described the creative elements which went into the elaborate main stage.
The theme, described as Orbyz, was “set in a magical universe made entirely out of ice” and “full of mythical creatures”.
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Organisers said no one was injured in the blaze but confirmed “our beloved main stage has been severely damaged”, adding they were “devastated”.
Spokesperson Debby Wilmsen added: “We received some truly terrible news today. A fire broke out on the Tomorrowland site … and our main stage was essentially destroyed there, which is truly awful.
“That’s a stage that took years to build, with so much love and passion. So I think a lot of people are devastated.”
Spokesperson Debby Wilmsen told reporters ‘a lot of people are devastated’
Despite the fire, Tomorrowland organisers said they were still expecting 38,000 festivalgoers at DreamVille, the event’s campsite.
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