Noel Edmonds weighs in on Jeremy Clarkson suspension saying the BBC has 'failed' after 'Bring Back Clarkson' campaign
The former Top Gear presenter says the corporation did not properly manage Clarkson's 'mercurial talent'
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Your support makes all the difference.Noel Edmonds has accused the BBC of "sheer incompetence", and described Jeremy Clarkson's suspension as a "failure" to manage him according to the Guardian.
Edmonds, who used to present Top Gear, said the broadcaster did not valuing their talent highly enough. The BBC has suspended Clarkson after what's been described as a "dust-up" and a "fracas" with a producer over dinner while filming Top Gear.
"The BBC have failed to manage one of the best talents on TV," the paper reported Edmonds as saying. "That is pointing the finger at Danny Cohen, Tony Hall, whoever is in senior management has failed appallingly to give Clarkson the support that such a mercurial talent requires."
The Deal Or No Deal presenter continued: "One of the greatest errors of BBC management in the recent era has been inability to manage talent. Without talent, a very large part of BBC is worthless."
Talking about the "sheer incompetence of BBC management", Edmonds argued that the programme's popularity should have been taken into consideration.
"Here is a hugely popular production, arguably one of the BBC’s most valuable productions, which is apparently being pulled from the schedule because of one of the presenters [being] involved in an incident."
He added that in the wake of the suspension "the viewer is the casualty".
Fans of the programme have signed the 'Bring Back Clarkson' petition in record numbers, with nearly 750,000 having put their names to it at the time of publication.
Perry McCarthy - Top Gear's original Stig - has also argued that the programme would be "damaged goods" without Clarkson.
In 1998, Edmonds allegedly had a rift with BBC production staff after Noel's House Party budget was cut. The Independent reported at the time that there was speculation there had been "a dispute between Mr Edmonds and the BBC over the format and production of the show."
The programme was cancelled in 1999 after poor viewing figures. Edmonds has worked worked with the BBC since.
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