BBC scandal: Piers Morgan and Jeremy Vine call on BBC presenter to come forward 'for the good of his colleagues'

Heavyweight television personalities Piers Morgan and Jeremy Vine are among those who have called for the unnamed BBC presenter at the heart of the recent scandal to come forward publicly for the good of his colleagues.

On Sunday (9 July) the British broadcaster confirmed it had suspended one of its male stars and contacted the police over allegations that he had paid a vulnerable teenager more than £30,000 for explicit photos over a three-year period. Now fresh allegations have been made against the presenter, with The Sun's front page on Wednesday ( July 12) reporting that a 23-year-old person claimed the individual broke Covid-19 lockdown rules to meet them in February 2021.

Ever since the scandal first became public, a number of BBC personnel have been forced to come out and distance themselves from the allegations. The likes of Rylan Clarke, Jon Kay, Nicky Campbell and Gary Lineker have quashed any speculation, as the identity of the presenter remains officially unknown.

Another of the corporation's stars, Jeremy Vine, has spoken out on Twitter to call on the person in question to come forward publicly, writing: "I’m starting to think the BBC Presenter involved in the scandal should now come forward publicly. These new allegations will result in yet more vitriol being thrown at perfectly innocent colleagues of his. And the BBC, which I’m sure he loves, is on its knees with this. But it is his decision and his alone."

Fellow talkshow superstar Piers Morgan has joined Vine in urging the presenter to make his identity known, noting that it would be "for the good of his colleagues, the BBC and himself."

Piers Morgan said: "It’s only a matter of time before he loses agency in the situation (and) somebody blurts out in parliament, or on a less responsible network. For the good of his colleagues, the BBC, and himself and his reputation, it is surely time for that presenter to reveal his own identity, and to vow to clear his name and defend himself if that’s what he can do."

When should the BBC publicly name the presenter?

It is not just those at the BBC but also the public who are urging the identity of the presenter to be revealed, and many believe that it is more of a case of when than if the corporation gives confirmation as the scandal continues to cause it and its workers reputational damage.

NationalWorld has also called on the BBC to name the presenter, saying that the publicly-funded broadcaster must do so for transparency and fairness.

Former BBC news producer and director of News-watch David Keighley commented: "What needs to be done here is a very thorough investigation, and conclusions can’t be jumped to until we know the full facts. But at the same time, you’ve got a developing situation, which is because it has been contained in the way it has. And we stress again, we don’t know precisely why that is, it is causing reputational damage, not just to the BBC itself, but to other presenters. It’s spreading like a cancer, is the problem.”

Mark Borkowski, a publicist and strategist, told Times Radio that the BBC can not go much longer without naming the individual, explaining: "We’ve got a situation where it’s an ongoing car crash and the BBC is so glacial about how they’re dealing with this, because this is a 21st century problem. They’re dealing with 20th century, sort of communication processes. We’re above it all.

"There’s a heavy legal duty on this and a duty of care, which makes it a nightmare for anybody managing this and to say that, okay, but I don’t believe that it can carry on for much longer that this person is not named."

The BBC has conducted an internal investigation into the presenter, but the Met Police has requested the process to be paused to scope out further work.