The BBC is working hard to be the channel that hosts a debate on Brexit between Theresa May and Jeremy Corbyn. There’s just one problem – the BBC appears to be a pro-Tory fake news outlet.

It seems that, on Monday (November 26), the BBC’s Newsnight show featured a Brexit-supporting priest named “Lynn” in an apparently-genuine debate on Theresa May’s Brexit deal:

But it seemed Lynn was not all she appeared to be:

So the allegation was that “Lynn” was not a qualified vicar, but was definitely a person who had appeared as an actor in BBC productions – but the BBC was denying that there was anything shady about her, and was claiming that anyone suggesting this must be a conspiracy theorist. Here’s what the Newsnight team had to say – and a response that suggests the social media sleuths were way ahead of the game:

Nobody was convinced – especially Stevie, below:

https://twitter.com/StevieCABZ/status/1068172728010711046

“Not a leader of any real, physical church entity”? Then what kind of vicar could “Lynn” be? Well, Stevie had a few answers for us:

https://twitter.com/StevieCABZ/status/1068117406231523328

That’s “Hayter”, it seems.

“Pastor at her own, minute Facebook church”? That deserves a little extra digging – but here‘s Evolve Politics, a social media news site that has already done the hard work for us:

“Whilst Lynn is not a genuine vicar, she does regularly attend church. However, the church in question is her own.

“Yes… Lynn is … the creator of the “Seeds For Wealth Ministries”, who describe themselves as a religious organisation who can help you “realize, release and walk into your financial freedom in Christ. To Educate, Equip and Empower the saints.”

“Newsnight’s claims that Lynn is “a pastor” are incredibly misleading. Pastors are merely church leaders, and anybody can start their own church with absolutely no registration or official documentation needed.

“Hayter also calls herself a “minister” on her acting profile and on her Facebook page, and anybody is free to become ordained as a minister on the internet!”

This is true, as Stevie discovered:

https://twitter.com/StevieCABZ/status/1068133169344450560

So the claim that she was a priest, if taken according to the accepted use of the term, falls. What about the claim that she is an actor?

The above profile on mandy.com suggests that she is, as does the list of credits below:

https://twitter.com/StevieCABZ/status/1068134182449233921

And here’s Evolve Politics again:

“She is, in fact, an actor – and not only that, she has previously worked as a minor cast member on numerous BBC programmes.

“Lynn’s full name is Lynn Marina Hayter, and uses her middle name for her acting work.

“Lynn’s past acting work includes playing a Drunkard on the BBC show Eastenders, playing a “Theatre goer” on the BBC show The Dresser, playing a female beggar in the BBC programme Dickensian, and was cast as a nurse in the BBC show The Chronicles.

“Having been cast by the corporation on numerous occasions, Lynn is clearly a figure well known to BBC producers.

“And… her repertoire extends through many ranges, including – one would assume – the part of a supposedly pro-Tory vicar on a prime time political debate programme.”

So: Not a genuine priest, if by that we mean a member of a recognised church. But a genuine actor, and one known to the BBC. And the BBC is unlikely to admit trying to deceive us, so we have reason to doubt its claims.

Is that enough for an ordinary person to decide the Corporation has deceived us? Consider this:

And this:

And this:

Also this:

That satirists got in on the act quickly:

https://twitter.com/GuitarMoog/status/1068186661186666496

But of course, that did not mean Newsnight should not receive harsher criticism:

https://twitter.com/KeithCameron5/status/1068220966407467009

These are hard words for an organisation that claims to pride itself on its impartiality – and there is clearly enough information here to cast doubt on that claim.

But the BBC wants to host the big debate on Brexit between Theresa May and Jeremy Corbyn. If it wins the rights to the broadcast, do you think the programme it produces will be impartial?

No.

Neither do I.

But there is worse to follow…

Visit our JustGiving page to help Vox Political’s Mike Sivier fight anti-Semitism libels in court

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