Five GB News Men Accused of Sexual Impropriety as Channel Engulfed by Wootton-Fox Misogyny Storm

GB News is employing at least five men who have faced past allegations of sexual impropriety – including one accused of raping a colleague and two others of groping offences, Byline Times can reveal in the wake of the broadcaster’s misogyny storm. 

Three of the men lost previous roles in other media companies following the serious allegations while the – now suspended – GB News presenter Dan Wootton advocated at a misconduct hearing for a fourth accused of persistent sexual harassment.

The fifth is the network’s chief executive Angelos Frangopoulos, who was named in a sexual harassment complaint last year that saw a female staffer leave GB News with a five-figure settlement having signed a non-disclosure agreement.

None of those involved has ever been charged by police and it is not clear whether GB News asked the three who had lost previous jobs about the circumstances of their departures when they were being recruited.

It comes as the news network continues to consider the future of Wootton following his misogynistic broadcast with actor-turned-activist Laurence Fox last Tuesday – which occurred just a week after Wootton was left to lead prime-time coverage of the Russell Brand affair, despite himself being at the centre of allegations of blackmail and serial sexual catfishing by this newspaper, following a three-year special investigation. 

Wootton has never denied using, or being connected, to the false online identities of ‘Martin Branning’ or ‘Maria Joseph’ – although he denies criminality.

The 40-year-old was suspended from GB News on Thursday along with Fox and Calvin Robinson, who on Friday credited Wootton as being “significant” to the building of the broadcaster through his influence on recruitment both “behind the cameras as well as on-screen talent”.

Today Byline Times continues to examine further allegations of sexism, along with harassment and racism, at the self-styled “free speech channel” and can reveal how it employs at least five men who have faced past allegations of sexual impropriety.

GB News declined to go on the record, but it is understood that the channel views itself as an equal opportunities employer, with workplace rules and codes, and has a procedure in which claims of wrongdoing are investigated and acted upon.

It says it addresses and investigates formal complaints professionally, even where these are against senior producers and presenters, and takes appropriate steps.

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Rape Allegation

This newspaper has spoken to more than 15 people with knowledge of the allegations against the five men.

The most serious allegation relates to a senior male GB News employee, who left his previous role at another media organisation having been accused of raping a junior female colleague.

The incident allegedly occurred in a hotel room following after-work drinks in 2021, following which the complainant required extensive external support and then left her job.

The matter was escalated to the company’s senior managers but a human resources investigation ended when the complainant was unable, for medical reasons, to make a statement to police, and the alleged perpetrator left his role and took up a new position at GB News.

A source with knowledge of the situation said: “The allegation was credible and detailed and sufficiently serious for the man involved to leave his job. It had a very big impact on the woman in question and her mental health suffered significantly afterwards and she was unable to continue in her role either.

“The details of the allegation were known to people within GB News when the man was given a new job there. His arrival upset a lot of people. Some said they would quit if they had to work with him and he ended up being placed into a role where they would not have to share a studio space.”

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‘Grim’ Grimes Messages

Another GB News controversy centres on the persistent sexual harassment of a junior straight male colleague by gay GB News presenter Darren Grimes.

Grimes was said to have swarmed the man with “incessant” calls – sometimes dozens in a single day – and messages in which he called him “angel” and made unwelcome invitations to his hotel room.

The complainant is said to have been initially reluctant to “rock the boat” over the alleged harassment because Grimes claimed to have an influential friendship with Angelos Frangopoulos, but was forced to after Grimes allegedly spread false rumours about him in the workplace.

Of Grimes, a source speaking on condition of anonymity told Byline Times: “At first bosses tried to dismiss it as an ‘office crush’. But then line managers demanded it be taken seriously. The guy involved was going through the ringer. He nearly had a nervous breakdown. He thought he was going to lose his job for speaking out. It was very stressful. There were tears.”

Last September, Grimes was removed from his presenting role for around a month but reinstated after Dan Wootton advocated for him via video call in a misconduct hearing attended by the network’s COO Mark Shipper and Mick Booker, among others.

“The attention the lad was getting was full on,” a second source told Byline Times. “A complaint was made, with evidence. Some of the messages were grim. People who saw them were shocked.

“But the senior editorial players just couldn’t, or wouldn’t, see the problem with it. They didn’t want to accept there was a problem with their on-screen talent. It was minimised until journalists started threatening to quit their jobs, and then it eventually went to HR.”

Grimes disappeared from screens for a month but returned after Dan Wootton, who is GB News’ highest-paid presenter earning £600,000-a-year, spoke up for him.

A third confidential source told this newspaper: “There was a meeting during which Dan strongly argued for Darren to be allowed to continue. Darren had even announced on social media that his show was ending. So, there was real surprise when he returned to air.”

Byline Times understands that the complainant was given a job away from Grimes.

The third source added: “As far as the complainant went, GBNews’ safeguarding amounted to letting them know by text when Grimes was due to be in the studio, so he could avoid him.”