Published: 13:27 GMT, 11 November 2025 | Updated: 13:43 GMT, 11 November 2025

BBC stars have seemingly heeded Tim Davie's call to 'stand up for our journalism' by mocking Donald Trump's threat to sue the corporation.

John Simpson, world affairs editor for BBC News, ridiculed the threat sent by lawyers on behalf of the US President on social media for describing the editing of a clip on Panorama as 'salacious' - threatening to sue for $1billion in damages.

'Due to their salacious nature, the fabricated statements that were aired by the BBC have been widely disseminated throughout various digital mediums, which have reached tens of millions of people worldwide,' the letter read.

The Oxford English Dictionary defines 'salacious' as meaning 'lustful, lecherous; sexually wanton' - unlikely adjectives to describe the editing of two pieces of footage that appeared to suggest Mr Trump incited violence ahead of the January 6 riots.

Mr Simpson - a corporation star for more than 50 years - also claimed that the threat from legal counsel Alejandro Brito had been sent to the wrong address.

The letter was sent to BBC Studios, the broadcaster's commercial arm, at the former Television Centre, rather than the BBC itself at New Broadcasting House.

'Donald Trump’s demand for a billion dollars from the BBC comes from a local Florida law firm,' he wrote on X.

'It was sent to the wrong address, and the writer didn’t know what "salacious" really means: "Due to their salacious nature, the fabricated statements that were aired by the BBC…"'

He joins a sea of current and former BBC journalists who are defending the corporation against what outgoing director-general Mr Davie described as a narrative 'given by our enemies' following the leak of a damning memo by former independent adviser Michael Prescott.