Richard Bacon has opened up about the 'deep sense of shame' he still carries from being fired from the children's show Blue Peter in 1998 after a cocaine scandal. In an interview on the podcast How To Fail with Elizabeth Day, the 50-year-old broadcaster revealed that the repercussions of the incident were intense, leading his usually stoic father to sob in the shower.
Father's Emotional Reaction
Bacon shared a heartbreaking story his mother told him: 'Well, the biggest shame about it is, some time later, I don't know how much time later, my mum told me it was the only time that she'd heard my dad cry, ever. He's just from that generation that doesn't. His own dad came out of World War 2 and didn't show emotion.'
He explained that his father, a criminal defence lawyer, had to go to court on the Monday morning after the News of the World published the story on Sunday. 'He went into the shower to cry. He turned on the shower, so that [mum] wouldn't hear him cry. He didn't want her to know. She didn't tell me at the time. She left it quite a while to be honest.'
Bacon added, 'Even to this day, she said it's the only time I've ever heard him cry. So when she told me that story, I felt a deep sense of shame.'
Betrayal by Best Friend
In the interview, Bacon also revealed that he knew his best friend, whom he worked with at Radio Nottingham, sold the story to the press. He suggested jealousy of his success was the motive. 'I think he was jealous of me,' Bacon said.
He recounted the events leading to his dismissal: 'What happened was, well, what happened was I took some cocaine.' He admitted it was not his first time, contrary to his initial claims. 'The first time I took it was in a nightclub called Browns in Covent Garden with that guy that you alluded to whose name I am not going to use. We were best mates and he got a wrap of it and I took the whole wrap at once. I didn't really understand it and I threw up, but I had taken it a handful of times before that.'
Firing and Aftermath
Bacon reflected on his time on Blue Peter, which lasted 20 months. 'I did 20 months on Blue Peter, pretty much the same amount of time that Keir Starmer was Prime Minister. We went out and obviously I shouldn't have done that. Blue Peter was such a big opportunity and I loved the job and I still really respect it as a programme... It was an incredible job to have at age 21, 22.'
Head of Children's BBC, Lorraine Heggessey, informed him that after the News of the World obtained the story, he had to be let go. Bacon was forced to return his Blue Peter badge. 'Then I had to hand in my badge. It's like leaving the LAPD. You have to hand in your badge, your Blue Peter badge. I could no longer get in free to the Motor Museum at Bewley.'
However, at the show's 60th anniversary in 2018, Bacon received his badge back. 'Peter Purvis, in front of all the other Blue Peter presenters, off camera, pinned one on me in front of them. And he said, all is forgiven. And all the other Blue Peter presenters applauded.'
Continued Career
Since leaving Blue Peter, Bacon has built a successful broadcasting career, appearing on The Big Breakfast, Good Morning Britain, and radio stations including Capital FM, Xfm London, and BBC Radio 5 Live.
