Adil Ray has come out swinging for former BBC chef Nadiya Hussain after she made a string of claims about her departure from the broadcaster.
Ms Hussain, who fronted several BBC cookery shows prior to their cancellations, has opened up in a series of interviews ahead of the release of her latest cookbook about her experience as a woman of colour in the TV industry.
The Bake Off winner has also questioned the timing of her departure, suggesting her decision to become more vocal about her faith led to awkward discussions.
In a new interview with the Guardian, Ms Hussain delved further, claiming: “I get paid less to do the same job as the white version of me.
Adil Ray echoed the claims made by the Bake Off winner
| PA
“I actively silenced myself because everything felt like an opportunity. It never felt as if I could just own it and say, ‘You know what, I’m actually good at this.’
“I think at the point where I realised I was, the show got cancelled, and I was like, I have zero control over this situation.”
Describing how she’d altered her persona to appease TV bosses, Ms Hussain added to the publication: “I’d become this palatable version of a Muslim that could be on television, that could write cookbooks.
“I’d become this really comfortable version of myself that was easy to digest.”
Nadiya Hussain was the face of a number of BBC cooking shows | BBC
Elsewhere in the interview, Ms Hussain claimed that when she’d raised complaints about a male counterpart or colleague who made “misogynistic or racist” comments, she was told: “That’s just the way they are.”
In the end, she suggested the TV industry and its approach to diversity and representation was “broken”, and she’s now come to realise that “I can’t fix a broken industry.”
The Guardian shared a link to the interview on its Instagram page, where it caught the attention of the aforementioned Mr Ray.
And the Lingo presenter was in agreement with Ms Hussain’s claims, replying to the social media post: “This is the sad reality for many.”
Nadiya Hussain has been a familiar face on cookery TV since winning Bake Off in 2015 | PA
And Mr Ray wasn’t the only familiar face to show their support for Ms Hussain. “HARD RELATE,” Countryfile’s Anita Rani penned.
Elsewhere, TV doctors Dr Amir Khan and Dr Nighat Arif similarly backed the claims. “On point,” Dr Khan said, before Dr Arif weighed in: “The strongest part of us is our voice – massive love to @nadiyajhussain.”
The comments in The Guardian come just days after Ms Hussain claimed in a separate interview that she’d struggle to replicate the success of Mary Berry because of her skin colour.
Ms Hussain admitted to PA that she “would’ve loved” to see herself in Ms Berry’s position and still cooking on primetime TV into her eighties.
Adil Ray sided with Nadiya Hussain’s claims
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“I would have loved to have seen that for myself, but that’s a dream that I can’t live up to because I’m not white,” she said.
“We don’t have longevity. I can’t even find another Muslim woman to equate myself to, or stand shoulder to shoulder with.
ITV GMB: Adil Ray regularly fronts the ITV breakfast show | ITV
“There’s this show of, ‘Look, we’re inclusive’, until we’re not. But it’s not about being inclusive in the moment.”
Meanwhile, Mr Ray has found himself in the news of late, after targeting Reform UK’s Suella Braverman in an online rant following her defection from the Conservatives.