BBC Have I got News For You awkward Gary Lineker debate leaves viewers fuming

Audiences of Have I Got News For You were left underwhelmed as the programme featured a piece on Gary Lineker's hasty departure from the corporation.

Originally set to leave after presenting the 2026 World Cup, Lineker was to step down following a contentious post about Israel-Gaza that led him to apologise and declare an earlier exit than scheduled, with his final appearance on MOTD on this weekend.

Host Victoria Coren Mitchell prompted the panel with a cheeky nudge: "Speaking of crisps, who has just been sacked?"

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Panellist Ian Hislop responded: ". He has left the BBC after retweeting an offensive antisemitic tweet from someone else about and Gaza, and having become famous for saying the government had used the language of the 1930s in German, he failed to spot one of the big things they did in Nazi Germany in the 1930s, and that was to refer to Jews as rats. So he retweeted a picture of a rat. And he understandably had to resign."

Janet Street-Porter, from , chimed in: "I just think, I'm sure he is a decent guy, but to retweet something like that on that subject without being ultra careful what you are retweeting, is stupid."

To which Ian quipped: "Things aren't always black and white, you have to be careful with the nuance, which obviously I always am and never get into any trouble ever," reports .

Comedian Chris McCausland concurred: "People can be very anti-BBC, and will look for any reason to have a go at them, but if you had a footballer tweet something that made the team look bad, these people would be let go."

As the discussion unfolded, reactions from viewers were varied, with one venting: "What a disgrace the BBC are. Can clearly see the people on #HIGNFY want to actually speak their mind but are forced to a script re Gaza and Gary Lineker #DefundtheBBC."

Another remarked: "I don't know why I expected different but the blanket condemnation of Gary Lineker by #hignfy was really really ugly."

Someone else contributed: "Whole panel not showing Lineker any respect there, surprised at Ian Hislop, not exactly speaking truth to power."

While another surmised: "Don't be surprised at hislop. He's always picked his battles very carefully."

Nonetheless, another viewer noted: "#HIGNFY on fire tonight totally destroying Lineker!"

Have I Got News For You is on BBC One on Fridays and BBC iPlayer