Monday’s front pages are dominated by news that an unnamed BBC presenter has been suspended from the BBC. The Daily Express says the BBC star has been accused of paying a young person £35,000 for explicit pictures. The corporation is in “turmoil”, says the paper, adding that police have been told about the allegations.
The Telegraph says the controversy over the alleged “star sex scandal” threatening to engulf the BBC is what prompted senior executives at the corporation to contact the Metropolitan Police. The BBC’s internal investigations team will meet Scotland Yard detectives for help with the case on Monday, the paper notes. It also features a picture of actor Brad Pitt who was filming at the British Grand Prix at Silverstone on Sunday.
The Sun has revealed new allegations about the BBC presenter accused of paying someone for explicit images. In a new story the paper claims the presenter made what it calls two “panicked calls” to the young person after the Sun’s report came out. The presenter allegedly asked the young person “what have you done” and asked them to ring their mother to get her to “stop the investigation”, the paper reports.
“Beeb’s briefs crisis” declares the Metro as it reports MPs have claimed that the BBC’s director general was too slow. The paper also features a picture of England cricketers celebrating as they kept their Ashes hopes alive by beating Australia on Sunday.
Director General Tim Davie has confirmed the BBC first received a complaint about the unnamed presenter in May, prior to new information emerging this week, reports the i. The paper says big-names in the BBC have taken to social media to deny being the individual involved.
“BBC calls in cops” declares the Daily Mirror. The paper says Mr Davie defended the corporation saying the presenter was dropped after “new allegations” came to light. Labour MP Rachel Reeves says the BBC “needs to get a grip” as it seems to “lurch from one scandal to another”, notes the paper.
Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer held urgent talks with the BBC’s director general on Sunday about the allegations being faced by a presenter, says the Daily Mail. The paper also features a picture of Nuria Sajjad who is the second girl to die from her injuries after a car crashed into a school in south-west London on Thursday.
The BBC suspended the unnamed presenter nearly two months after a complaint was first made by the young person’s family, reports the Times. The paper says the family first complained on 19 May, but saw that the presenter was still on air in June.
The new allegations have forced the boss of the BBC to “raise game”, says the Daily Star. The paper says the corporation has faced criticism over why the suspension of the presenter took so long.
Meanwhile, Germany and the US are under pressure from other allies to show greater support for Ukraine’s eventual membership of Nato, reports the Financial Times. This comes just a few days before Nato leaders meet in Lithuania. Members of the alliance were caught off guard by the “conservative” US and German stance, officials told the paper.
