London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Jul 22, 2025

Struggling channel GB News hires Nigel Farage to host show

Struggling channel GB News hires Nigel Farage to host show

A British news channel that launched as a right-leaning alternative to the BBC and Sky News has recruited populist politician Nigel Farage as a presenter
GB News, a British news channel that launched last month as a right-leaning alternative to the BBC and Sky News, said Saturday it has recruited populist politician Nigel Farage as a presenter.

The channel said the former leader of the pro-Brexit U.K. Independence Party will host an evening show airing Mondays to Thursdays.

GB News has had a rocky start it began broadcasting in mid-June with a roster of hosts that included newspaper and TV news veteran Andrew Neil and broadcasters recruited from the BBC, Sky and ITV. It promised to provide an alternative to an alleged “metropolitan elite” bias among the established news channels, but denied it would be a British equivalent of Fox News.

British broadcasting rules require news channels to be accurate and impartial in their coverage.

Hiring the high-profile but divisive Farage, who spent years stoking concerns about immigration and later became Britain’s most prominent supporter of Donald Trump, could be a sign the channel plans to put more emphasis on right-wing politics and “culture war” issues.

When GB News launched in June, Neil, who is the channel's chairman as well as a presenter, said it would “expose the growing promotion of cancel culture” and give a voice “to those who feel sidelined or silenced.”

But its commitment to free speech was questioned after it censured one of its presenters, Guto Harri, for taking a knee this week during an on-air discussion of the anti-racism gesture adopted by England’s national soccer team. His gesture drew an overwhelmingly negative response from viewers.

On Friday GB News said it did “not have a company line on taking the knee” but that Harri doing so on air “was an unacceptable breach of our standards.”

Harri has not appeared on air since the incident on Tuesday. British newspapers reported that the channel’s head of news, John McAndrew, had quit. McAndrew could not immediately be reached for comment.

The channel, which has been backed by New York-based Discovery and British investor Paul Marshall, among others, has also experienced teething problems such as technical glitches and seen its ratings decline.

Neil, who has taken a break after two weeks hosting a daily show, said GB News was “finding its feet.”

“Start ups are fraught and fractious,” he tweeted Friday. “@GBNEWS is no exception. But the news channel is finding its feet and has a great future. Watch this space.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
×