Laurence Fox launches a fresh attack on Ava Evans after being suspended for sexist rant… as GB News descends into further chaos with more infighting and execs warning staff that broadcasters do not have a ‘right to abuse’

• The GB News host claimed he ‘hadn’t heard of’ Ava Evans before his on-air rant 

Laurence Fox has launched a fresh attack on journalist Ava Evans claiming he ‘hadn’t heard of her’ before his sexist on-air rant about the journalist.

The GB News host, who was suspended by the channel after saying ‘who would want to sh*g that?’ about JOE political correspondent, said he had ‘stooped down to her level’ in the heavily criticised segment.

Speaking on the Triggernometry podcast with comedians Francis Foster and Konstantin Kisin, the actor-turned-political activist said he had become ’emotional’ as he felt she had made light of male mental health struggles.

He admitted the remarks were ‘crass’ but said he didn’t feel they ‘merited the wall-to-wall’ media coverage they have received in recent days and the chaos it has brought the news channel.

It comes as GB News, which is known as the ‘home of free speech’, defended its decision to suspend Fox in an internal email to staff which challenged the ‘falsehood that conflates free speech with a right to verbally abuse’.

Laurence Fox has launched a fresh attack on Ava Evans days after saying ‘who would want to sh*g that?’ about the journalist on GB News. Pictured: Fox on the Triggernometry podcast on Friday

Fox was suspended for his on-air rant about Ms Evans after her previous comments about male suicide. Pictured: Ms Evans appearing on the Politics JOE podcast

Speaking on Friday after his suspension, Fox told the Triggernometry podcast that he regretted the tone of his remarks on Dan Wootton’s show the Tuesday before.

READ MORE HERE:  Laurence Fox is spotted in public for the first time since GB News suspended him for saying he wouldn’t ‘want to sh*g’ female journalist Ava Evans – as he slams TV channel’s disciplinary hearing as a ‘show trial’

When the hosts remarked to Fox that ‘in the cold light of day, it [the clip] doesn’t look good does it?’, he responded by admitting: ‘No.’

He said that he had ‘strong feelings’ on the show after being riled by comments Ms Evans had previously made when she was appearing on the BBC speaking about the topic of male suicide, in which she called for a minister of mental health for everyone in government, dismissing the suggestion of just a men’s mental health minister.

He told the podcast: ‘When I listen back to it now, it’s just kind of crass. It’s the kind of thing you’d say in the pub. 

‘I think I made the point which was the point I wanted to make, which is when you’ve got a misandrist fourth wave feminist who wants men to be terrified and scared of women, who tweets pictures of herself saying ‘I’m socially distancing from men’, I’m just like ‘stop’. 

‘Instead of dismantling her ideas I just said ‘I can’t think of a single man who’d want to shag you, I mean which self-respecting man would want to shag you?’ which was also trying to be funny. Big mistake.’  

When asked if he felt he had a duty to be less emotional given his role as a political commentator, Fox said: ‘I think we need more emotion in politics, rather than people just nodding along to whatever they say. 

‘I perhaps need to harness my emotion but emotion and instinct are two of the most powerful tools that one has in the armoury. But you’re right.’

Ava Evans said Fox’s comments were ‘unforgivable’ and she now fears for her safety given the number of threats she has been receiving since the show

Fox said he is unable to ‘speak freely’ about the hearing on Friday, before showing up at the Honour Oak pub to protest against drag queens on Saturday

He then aimed another jab towards the journalist, saying: ‘Who is Ava Evans? With all due respect to her I’d never heard of her until two days ago, I don’t know what she is or what she does for a living. I still don’t know what she does for a living and I probably should have not gone down to her level.’

He continued: ‘I don’t really, if I’m truly honest, think it’s merited the wall-to-wall, channel-to-channel condemnation.’

The father-of-two went on to say he what he said had ‘demeaned’ Ms Evans and apologised, but said: ‘I don’t think it’s misogyny or anything like that. I think it’s disrespectful.’

Yesterday the former Reclaim Party candidate appeared in public to attend a protest against Drag Queen Story Hour outside the Honour Oak pub in London, alongside right-wing group Turning Point UK.

The protest was met with counter-demonstrators who turned out in support of the local LGBT+ community.

Chants of ‘Nazi scum off our streets’ and ‘loser’ could be heard as Fox attempted to give a speech over counter-protesters using a microphone.

He was also seen taking selfies with attendees and addressing counter protesters through a wall of police officers who maintained a distance between the two groups. Fox later tweeted about the protest with a video of counter-protesters.

Speaking at the protest Fox said he ‘hadn’t heard anything’ about how long his suspension from GB News would be.

Ms Evans said: ‘I’m not naive. I know that men talk like that about women. But this was on national TV. It was demeaning. It was dehumanising’

It comes as bosses at the channel defended their decision to suspend him and the show’s host Dan Wootton in an internal email to staff.

In the message, which was penned by the channel’s chairman Alan McCormick, staff were told GB News is ‘not a place that tolerates personally denigrating comments or insults, and we never have been’.

In the email, which were leaked to The Sunday Times, McCormick appeared to come out fighting against the ‘falsehood that conflates free speech with a right to verbally abuse’ – an apparent rebuke against those critical of the suspensions.

Helena Morrissey, who sits on the board of the channel’s owner All Perspectives Ltd, told The Sunday Times: ‘This week it went horribly wrong, and the actions that were taken show what we’re about. And it doesn’t mean that we suddenly don’t believe in free speech, because that is absolutely not the case.’

Days earlier presenter Calvin Robinson was suspended from the channel after suggesting bosses were ‘afraid of the woke mob’ when they decided to suspend Fox and Wootton. 

The paper reports that divisions are growing within the channel, with some believing the suspensions go against its principles of free speech, while others see it as a chance to move forward.

One insider told the publication: ‘The channel is at a crossroads. There has been a battle going on internally between professional journalist presenters having to contend with people like Fox threatening to bring the whole thing crashing down. 

‘If GB News is to become a respected news channel, then all the people on it need to be respectable. There’s long been talk along the lines of: we need to get rid of the cranks and get serious.’

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