Ian Wright blasts "out of touch" BBC

Ian Wright has launched a scathing attack on the BBC.

The former Arsenal striker quit as a Match of the Day pundit earlier in the month, claiming he was only employed to be a "comedy jester".

In an interview with The Sun, Wright expressed his anger at the BBC for losing the rights to screen England internationals and becoming reliant on reality TV.

He said: "Viewers want international football and it should be the BBC providing it for them. It just shows how out of touch they have become and it's a complete disgrace. Deep down, I don’t think the stuffed shirts there really know what they want.

"They put out these sinister adverts about what will happen if you don’t pay the licence fee, then serve up a load of rubbish.

"What do viewers get for their money? Cookery programmes, Strictly Come Dancing - and an unbelievable amount of repeats."

The 44-year-old added he was "bitterly disappointed" at comments Gary Linekar made regarding his "jester" outburst.

Linekar opened last week's Match of the Day by saying: "We’ve got vital games at both ends of the table. It’s all too serious now for any court jesting."

Wright hit back by calling Lineker's comment "a two-bob gag about court jesting, which I found completely disrespectful".

Wright, who worked at the BBC for seven years, described the corporation as "regimented" and claimed it holds back talented presenters.

He explained: "Look at Graham Norton and, to a lesser extent, Johnny Vaughan. Norton's a diluted version of himself on the BBC, as was Vaughan when he did his chatshow."