A number of TV presenters including Gary Lineker, Rylan Clarke and Jeremy Vine have denied being the anonymous presenter accused of paying a teenager for the explicit images.
The allegations came after reports claimed an unnamed top-rated TV star had paid the teenager more than £35,000 for sexually explicit photographs taken when she was 17.
The mother of the alleged recipient blames the presenter for her child’s cocaine addiction. In response to the allegations, Gary Lineker took to Twitter and said that he was not involved in it. Rylan Clarke and Jeremy Vine also took to social media to deny being the accused presenters.
Commenting on the claims, Piers Morgan suggested there would be a significant impact on Britain once the TV presenter’s identity was revealed.
Gary Lineker said he was not involved in the scam. Hate to disappoint the haters but it’s not me,’ he added.
Rylan Clarke also took to Twitter, saying “I’m not sure why my name is floating around but there’s a story in The Sun – that’s not me babe. I’m currently in Italy filming a show for the BBC, so Take my name out of your mouth.”
Jeremy Vine said he was not involved in the scam. He added, “Just want to say that I’m very much looking forward to hosting my radio show on Monday – whoever the ‘BBC presenter’ in the news is, I have the same message for you as Rylan did earlier: it’s Certainly not me.”
The alleged victim’s mother claims her child’s life was destroyed by the presenter, who allegedly paid more than £35,000 for the explicit images. The family contacted the TV network to request that the presenter stop sending the money. The anonymous teen turned from a happy-go-lucky teen to a drug addict. The network has assured that it takes all allegations seriously and processes are in place to investigate and address them.
A TV network spokesperson said: “We take any allegations very seriously, and we have processes in place to actively deal with them. If we receive information that requires further investigation or testing, We will take steps to make this happen. This includes actively trying to speak to people who have contacted us to gain more information and understanding of the situation. If, at any point, new When information comes to light or is provided – including through newsletters – it will be dealt with appropriately. Internal procedures.”
Sympathetic Twitter users have shown support for Rylan Clark, assuring him of his true nature and urging him not to worry about the baseless allegations. The identity of the accused presenter has not been revealed and the investigation is on.
