BBC: Carol Vorderman hints at 'sexism' in sacking from radio show

The former Countdown star’s show was axed in November 2023 with the BBC citing her breaking social media guidelines after she became increasingly outspoken about the Tory UK government on Twitter/X.

She claimed in an interview with the Sunday Times that she was “threatened” by the channel as top bosses became uneasy about her criticism of politicians.

In the same week she was sacked, former news anchor Huw Edwards was arrested for what was subsequently disclosed to be making indecent images of children, to which he pleaded guilty in July.

“BBC management made two decisions about two presenters within 24 hours,” Vorderman said.

“One was to sack me for five innocuous tweets. The other, knowing the serious nature of Huw’s arrest, was to keep him on and carry on paying his salary. I mean … no sexism!”

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While he has not been facing the BBC’s News at Ten programme for over a year, he has been allowed to keep his monthly salary. 

However, last month the BBC asked Edward to repay more than £200,000 which he was paid between his arrest in November 2023 and leaving the corporation in April. 

BBC director-general Tim Davie admitted last month that he knew Edwards had been arrested in November 2023. 

Elsewhere in the interview, Vorderman described the BBC’s social media guidelines as “nonsense,” adding there were never any complaints from listeners about her or her show.

Huw Edwards pleaded guilty to possessing indecent images of children in July

“I get it if you’re working in news or a political programme, but I was with my friend Nathan Sussex, asking questions such as ‘How many things can you do with a Wellington boot?’,” she said.

“The rest of it was music. There were no complaints from listeners.”

Speaking about being “threatened” by the BBC, she said: “The feedback I got was the very top echelons were very bothered about what I was doing.

After November 2022 when she began tweeting prolifically about what she saw as endemic Tory corruption, she said she was told to rein it in.

Vorderman said: “It was a threat. ‘You shut up or we’ll sack you.’ Well, f***ing sack me then.”

A BBC spokesperson said: “The BBC published its new social media guidance last September which strikes a balance between the BBC’s commitment to impartiality and freedom of expression. The guidance sets out clear expectations for freelancers, which includes a particular responsibility to uphold civility in public discourse.”

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Some of Vorderman’s tweets included one where she questioned if the Conservative Party was the “sleaziest in history”. In another, she called ministers “a lying bunch of greedy, corrupt, destructive, hateful, divisive, gaslighting crooks”.

She also tweeted to former home secretary Suella Braverman: “What I want to stop, and what the law abiding majority wants to stop is your vile government clinging onto power for a day longer.”

The BBC brought in new social media rules for its presenters last year over Match of the Day presenter Gary Lineker's tweet comparing the Government's Rwanda policy to Nazi Germany.