Ant Middleton axed by C4 over 'personal conduct'

Channel 4 has said it will not work with Ant Middleton again due to his "personal conduct".

Last year, the SAS: Who Dares Wins star faced criticism over comments about the Black Lives Matter protests and coronavirus.

In a statement, the channel said: "It has become clear that our views and values are not aligned."

Ant Middleton has also posted, saying he's "really excited about the future and what's coming this year".

SAS: Who Dares Wins sees civilians put through gruelling military training exercises to test their physical and mental strength.

• Middleton calls Channel 4 'desperate' over sacking

The former soldier faced a backlash for his comments about coronavirus and Black Lives Matter protests

The full statement from Channel 4 says: "Ant Middleton will not be taking part in future series of SAS: Who Dares Wins. 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."

The 40-year-old said on social media he had "decided it's time to move on from SAS Who Dares Wins UK".

He added: "Big respect to my fellow DS - it's been a journey I'll never forget. Thanks to everyone that took part and made the show what it is."

"Really excited about the future and what's coming this year."

In June, he apologised after referring to Black Lives Matter protesters as "absolute scum" as he complained about the "extreme left" and the English Defence League's "extreme right" taking to the streets.

Ant Middleton said he was "anti-racist and anti-violence" after deleting the tweet.

In March last year, he backtracked on comments he made about the coronavirus pandemic after he urged people to "carry on as normal".

He told his social media followers to not "be a sheep" and said he did not believe Government advice to self-isolate applied to him because he is "strong and able".

The former soldier later said he had been "a bit insensitive towards the magnitude, the scale, of the crisis that's happening in the UK".

• Celebrity SAS: No way for stars to prepare mentally

As well as SAS: Who Dares Wins, Ant Middleton also presented the programme's celebrity spin-off, which has featured famous faces including 1Xtra presenter Yasmin Evans, reality star Joey Essex and ex-footballer Wayne Bridge.

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