A well-known BBC radio presenter, Tony Livesey, has left his job after allegations tied his earlier career to a sexual exploitation scandal surrounding businessman David Sullivan. Staff at the radio station BBC 5 Live were told on 3 August that Livesey would not be returning, according to The Guardian.

Heidi Dawson, the head of BBC 5 Live, told staff that Livesey had decided to leave. He had hosted a late-night show four nights a week for 16 years. Before joining the BBC, Livesey spent 18 years at a group of tabloid newspapers called the Sport, rising from reporter to editor-in-chief — the top editorial job. He left that role in 2006 to focus on broadcasting.

The trigger was a BBC Panorama investigation. Panorama is a long-running BBC television programme known for in-depth investigative journalism. This investigation, carried out jointly with the Times newspaper over two years, accused Sullivan of sexually exploitative and predatory behaviour towards women over several decades. Seven women accused Sullivan of sexual misconduct. Three said he used his power as owner of the Sport newspapers to pressure them for sex when they were looking for work. Sullivan has denied the allegations. Through his lawyers, he said: "I categorically deny all of these complaints."

Two things connect Livesey to the scandal. First, a woman in the investigation said Livesey had arranged a meeting between her and Sullivan. Livesey said he has "no recollection" of doing this and that it was "not part" of his job. Second, a book Livesey wrote in 1998 described how he and Sullivan came up with a feature called "countdown to 16," which counted down to models' 16th birthdays — the age at which they could legally be photographed topless for the first time. Livesey has said the feature was "categorically" not his idea and that large parts of his book were "fictionalised," meaning made up or exaggerated.

Livesey had first stepped back from his radio show in June 2026, after the Panorama episode aired. The BBC confirmed this at the time, and The Telegraph reported his temporary removal. The Mirror later reported that he would not return. That temporary step-back has now become a permanent departure.

The fallout for Sullivan goes beyond the newspapers. He also announced his resignation as a director and co-chair of West Ham United, a Premier League football club, on 6 June 2026. Sullivan owns a 38.8% stake in the club, meaning he owns nearly 39 out of every 100 shares. A football regulator — a body that oversees the sport — could force him to sell that stake. For three years, there has also been a Football Association investigation into Sullivan's contact with West Ham's women's and youth teams. That investigation led to a temporary agreement restricting his access to those squads, as a safeguarding measure to protect young and vulnerable players.

The broader context here is about institutions holding people accountable for past behaviour across different areas: media, sport, and regulation. The BBC was investigating a person connected to one of its own presenters, while also being the organisation broadcasting the findings. That the BBC's Panorama team worked with the Times for two years, reported on seven accusers, and then saw one of its own radio hosts caught up in the fallout, puts the BBC in an unusual spot: it is both the investigator and an institution affected by the story.

Livesey's claim that his 1998 book was "fictionalised" and that he has no memory of the alleged meeting directly clashes with what an identified alleged victim has said. A conflict between a published first-person account and the author later saying it was not true is something that has come up before in media investigations. It is likely to be a key point if any formal process follows.

For West Ham, Sullivan's resignation as director and co-chair did not settle the question of who owns the club. His 38.8% stake is still there. If a football regulator forces him to sell, it would be one of the strongest actions taken by this still-new regulatory body. It would also set a new precedent: conduct exposed by a media investigation could lead to a regulatory penalty in a completely different sector. The Football Association safeguarding investigation, already running for three years, runs on a separate track.

For 5 Live, Livesey's exit means losing a long-serving presenter whose late-night show was a familiar fixture. How the station fills those hours, and whether the Sullivan investigation turns up more names linked to the Sport newspapers, are the open questions as of 3 August 2026.