BBC reporter red-faced as furious heckler yells 'scrap the licence fee!' in hijacked report

BBC reporter red-faced as furious heckler yells 'scrap the licence fee!' in hijacked report

WATCH NOW: Moment BBC report is hijacked by furious member of the public

BBC
Alex Davies

By Alex Davies


Published: 03/10/2023

- 08:45

Updated: 03/10/2023

- 08:51

BBC reporter Peter Ruddick was helpless when a passerby let the corporation know exactly what he thought

BBC Breakfast was forced to cut off one of its reporters prematurely on Tuesday morning when a member of the public hijacked the segment.

Reporter Peter Ruddick was speaking to presenters Sally Nugent and Jon Kay from Manchester Piccadilly Station as they mulled over the latest developments with HS2.


Reports have emerged in the past few days that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is plotting to scrap parts of HS2's initial plans.

While Sunak has been met with a mixed reception from political counterparts, Kay was keen to hear from Ruddick what passengers in Manchester thought of the potential axe.

"Well from train strikes to delays (and) cancellations, passengers here are pretty used to uncertainty these days, Jon," Ruddick replied.

He continued: "I will say in recent days there's been a palpable lack of surprise around these reports.

BBC reporter

BBC reporter caught off-guard by disgruntled passerby

BBC

"There are plenty of people who you talk to who are - would welcome the cancellation of HS2. There are concerns about the cost, about delays to the project, and questions about the benefits of the scheme.

"It does now seem increasingly likely -" Ruddick continued before he was caught off-guard by a member of the public.

A man barged his way into the show and shouted at the camera: "Slash the licence fee you greedy..."

Before the passerby could finish his point, the BBC Breakfast cameras cut back to Nugent in the studio as Ruddick could be seen staring down at his phone.

Nugent explained the incident and the abrupt conclusion was down to "unwanted attention" from the passerby before she moved on to a different reporter.

The moment was quickly shared online, with a number of viewers finding the interaction rather amusing.

One viewer shared the clip alongside the caption on X: "hahaha 'slash the license fee ya greedy vu-...' #BBCBreakfast #bbcnews #GMB," followed by laughing emojis.

While a second replied to the moment and simply put: "Made my morning."

Sally Nugent

Sally Nugent was forced to swiftly move on

BBC

The member of the public's outrage may be deemed justifiable to some as the corporation has come under fire in recent days for a number of its choices when it comes to spending the licence fee.

The Beeb was blasted by viewers of Mortimer & Whitehouse: Gone Fishing fans for going "woke" after vegan comedian Lee Mack replaced Bob Mortimer for an episode.

Others have criticised the BBC for its Green Sport Awards, with some claiming it's a waste of taxpayer money.

Add to the mix disgruntled reactions to the new drama Boiling Point, and both a favouritism and sexism row surrounding Strictly Come Dancing and it seems the public opinion of the Beeb's programming at the moment isn't particularly favourable.

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