Journalist Clive Myrie was reportedly “pulled” from a BBC News at Ten broadcast after joking about former prime minister Boris Johnson on Have I Got News For You.
The satirical comedy show was broadcast at 9pm on June 16, and Mr Myrie was reportedly replaced on News at Ten the same evening.
The Times reported that BBC content chief Charlotte Moore replaced Mr Myrie with presenter Jane Hill over potential impartiality accusations.
Who is Clive Myrie?
Clive Myrie, 58, is a British award-winning journalist who works for the BBC. He is from Bolton, Lancashire, and studied at the University of Sussex.
Mr Myrie became a journalist after gaining a place on BBC’s journalism trainee scheme. He has since reported for Panorama, Newsnight and presented several BBC news programmes.
He became a foreign correspondent in 1996 and has reported from more than 80 countries, according to the Reuters Institute.
Mr Myrie has covered major news events, including the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and former US president Barack Obama’s election in 2008.
He told the University of Sussex that his biggest achievement was “surviving the shark-infested waters of the BBC for 24 years”.
He is the host of Mastermind, having replaced John Humphrys in 2021.
What did he say about Boris Johnson?
On Have I Got News For You, Mr Myrie provided a spoof voiceover for a clip of Mr Johnson running with his dog, and said: “After being found by the House of Commons committee to have lied repeatedly, Boris Johnson takes the opportunity to deny that he’s ever been jogging or has a dog.”
He also described Mr Johnson’s honours list as “mad”.
Comedian Ian Hislop, one of the BBC show’s two team captains with Paul Merton, anticipated a backlash against Mr Myrie’s comments, saying: “You’ll remember you were here for the end of Clive Myrie’s career.”
What have people said about it?
According to The Times, an insider said: “There wasn’t a specific joke which triggered the request.
“It was more to do with concerns that Clive was doing two very different types of programme within an hour of each other. There was possibly a bit of over-caution, which felt a bit over the top to most people in news.”
A BBC executive said: “It didn’t feel right for Clive to go almost straight to the news when he’d just been making jokes,” according to the Independent, “It was a tonal thing rather than due to anyone being overly anxious.”
Was Clive Myrie attacked in Ukraine?
Earlier this year, a rumour that Mr Myrie was attacked in Ukraine circulated online.
The rumour suggested that while Mr Myrie was reporting from the warzone in Ukraine, he was beaten up by a gang.
In February, the journalist dispelled the rumours, tweeting: “How fascinating to see a lie, fly! Don’t you just love bots!!”
