British sports commentator Gray Lineker has returned to the BBC after a number of his presenting colleagues walked out in support of the ex-footballer.
Lineker was suspended from the BBC sports show Match Of The Day on Friday last week for a Tweet in which he compared the UK government’s language around asylum seekers policy to that of “Nazi Germany”.
His presenting colleagues and friends – including Ian Wright – refused to appear on the flagship BBC show over the weekend, in an act of solidarity with Linekar.
The mass walkout threw the broadcaster’s weekend coverage into disarray.
In response, Tim Davie, the director general of the BBC, apologized for the widespread disruption to sports programming and announced an independent review of the corporation’s internal social media guidelines.
On Instagram, Lineker celebrated the news.
“I am glad that we have found a way forward,” he said in the joint statement with Davie (published on The Guardian’s Instagram account). “I support this review and look forward to getting back on air.”
