Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Lifestyle
Isobel Lewis

Victoria Derbyshire scolds Tory peer Ken Baker after phone keeps ringing on Newsnight

BBC

Newsnight viewers – and Victoria Derbyshire – were unable to contain their laughter after Conservative peer Ken Baker’s phone wouldn’t stop ringing on TV.

During Tuesday (31 January) night’s episode of the BBC political programme, presenter Derbyshire sat down to discuss the state of the Tory party with the 88-year-old politician.

However, Baker’s phone began ranging during the conversation, with the Baron saying: “My advice to him is not to listen to my telephone, never mind.”

But while Baker thought he’d put his phone away, it kept ringing, leading him to ask Derbyshire: “Will you turn it off?”

She put the phone on silent, joking: “You’re in demand, you really are.”

The phone began ringing againt as the conversation kept on the topic of prime minister Rishi Sunak, with Derbyshire laughing: “Somebody is telling you to shush.”

She handed Baker back his phone at the end of the conversation.

‘Will you turn it off?’ Baker asked the presenter (BBC)

Viewers at home joked that “Ken Baker’s irrepressible mobile phone will remain a comic moment of the year”.

“Who needs Spitting Image when you’ve got the real Ken Baker and his unstoppable mobile on Newsnight? The funniest thing I’ve seen on telly in years!” one tweet read.

“Let’s all phone Ken Baker! Let’s all phone Ken Baker! La, la, la, la,” joked one viewer.

“It was one, two, three, four five - nil to Ken Baker’s mystery caller on Newsnight. Didn’t anyone on set know how to turn a phone off?” another commenter wrote.

One viewer tweeted: “Ken Baker’s mobile on Newsnight. I’m not technically skiled, but someone must make Victoria Derbyshire saying to him, sternly, ‘Give me your phone’ into a Gif.”

“Victoria Derbyshire is getting pretty hacked off [with] Ken Baker. One, he won’t stop talking, and his bloody phone keeps ringing! AND he has the naff Nokia ringtone,” another wrote.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.