Ant Middleton: Former SAS star says 'woke patrol' took over series

Middleton said the "woke patrol" had made it impossible for the show to be "true to the military ethos"

Ant Middleton has said the "woke patrol" had taken over SAS: Who Dares Wins, leading him to exit the series.

On Tuesday, Channel 4 said it would not work with him again due to his "personal conduct".

It did not go into further detail, but there was speculation it was connected to controversial comments Middleton previously made on social media.

On Wednesday, The Daily Mirror reported Middleton made inappropriate comments to a member of staff on the show.

In response, Middleton told Good Morning Britain he accepted he hadn't been the easiest person to work with and had "butted heads" with the production team - particularly because the show, in his opinion, had been watered down.

But he noted that confrontational language and behaviour was necessary to protect the authenticity of the military-based series.

"Over the years, the PC patrol have kicked in, the woke patrol have kicked in to the point where we can't say anything, we can't be ourselves," he told Piers Morgan and Susanna Reid.

"We can't even act on the ground without health and safety jumping in going, 'Oh! You can't put them in at shoulder level in the water, you've got to put them at waist height' and it's been so controlled and so managed and so inauthentic now that I've decided to be completely walk away."

Channel 4 told BBC News: "Our decision not to renew Ant Middleton's contract and not to work with him again was solely based on his personal conduct off camera and is not related to his on-screen persona as a DS. SAS: Who Dares Wins will continue to be as tough as it's ever been."

Middleton said he had clashed with the health and safety department several times

On Wednesday, Middleton said: "When I filmed the last episode, it became a half-scripted sort of reality show, full control was taken from me, from health and safety to production."

"And after that I said, 'Look, I'm not gonna film anymore, I'm done with SAS: Who Dares Wins'. I wanted to part in a healthy way and in a positive way.

"[Channel 4] knew I was going, and all of a sudden they dropped this bomb about Black Lives Matter, about been axed."

Last June, Middleton apologised after referring to Black Lives Matter (BLM) and English Defence League (EDL) protesters as "absolute scum". In March last year, he also backtracked on comments he made about the coronavirus pandemic after he urged people to "carry on as normal".

Middleton continued: "Ultimately what they're doing is they're protecting their brand and they knew I was going, they got in there before me."

"Everything else is smoke and mirrors, all these excuses that are coming out, everything like inappropriate comments."

'If you get offended, then so be it'

Referring to allegations of inappropriate comments, Middleton said: "It's like, 'You're on SAS: Who Dares Wins. We say inappropriate things, we do inappropriate things. If you get offended by them, then then so be it.'

"The course is a hardcore course, it's gritty, you're going to see inappropriate things, you're going to witness inappropriate things, but it's never direct."

Middleton said he hadn't been told the details of an alleged complaint from a female staff member but said he assumed it was someone objecting to a "military banter"-style comment he might have made on set about a new recruit.

Ant Middleton is a former United Kingdom Special Forces (UKSF) soldier, and now TV star

The 40-year-old said his working relationship with the station and the show's production company started off as a good one, but the he was no longer able to make the show "true to the military ethos", as was the original intention.

In its initial statement, Channel 4 said: "Following a number of discussions Channel 4 and Minnow Films have had with him in relation to his personal conduct it has become clear that our views and values are not aligned and we will not be working with him again."

But Middleton responded on Wednesday: "Channel 4 and Minnow Films' statement is very reckless and desperate.

"That's the word - it's desperate. Especially backed by excuses like the BLM tweet. The BLM tweet I've done just under a year ago, [and] settled that.

"I didn't word it correctly and I acknowledged that, but we put that under the carpet. And a couple of months later, I filmed two more series of SAS: Who Dares Wins."

SAS: Who Dares Wins has run for seven series, since 2015, and former United Kingdom Special Forces (UKSF) soldier Middleton has been the chief instructor throughout.

The show sees civilians put through gruelling military training exercises to test their physical and mental strength.