Post Office scandal victims fight back tears in emotional BBC Breakfast interview – but viewers are divided

VICTIMS of the Post Office scandal fight back tears in an emotional BBC Breakfast interview.

The flagship breakfast programme hosted a special episode, live from Fenny Compton ahead of the publicly enquiry into the Post Office Scandal.

Jon Kay, 54, was separated from longtime co-star Sally Nugent, 52, as he presented a significant portion of the show from Warwickshire.

He fronted BBC Breakfast from the same village hall that Alan Bates held the first his gathering of sub-postmasters as they began their campaign for justice.

The TV personality was surrounded by some the sub-postmasters that faced criminal charges, as they were invited onto the flagship morning programme to share their experiences.

Jess Kaur was accused of theft in 2009 before her charges were finally dropped in 2011.

She explained the resilience of the group who were still fighting to clear their names and get compensation.

According to Ms Kaur, the post office sent their own personal doctors to see if she was even ill with a "mental health breakdown".

She also said that a WhatsApp group was set up called "winners" as they all stay in touch with each other or "need comforting."

Throughout her time on the show, she tightly clasped the hand of fellow sub-postmaster Seema Misra as she held back tears.

Mrs Misra was suspended in 2008 and was sentenced to prison in 2010 for 15 months.

She was later cleared on any wrongdoing in 2021 and the two ladies comforted each other during the special episode.

Meanwhile, Sharon Brown and her husband Kevin also appeared on the show as they detailed the decades of impact this had on their family, finances, mental health and relationships.

The pair broke down in a pre-recorded segment as she admitted she hadn't seen her family for years after the scandal "broke us."

When the programme cut back to the village hall, Sharon wiped away tears as she explained how she used to hide at home and even avoided going to the shops out of embarrassment

Some viewers took to social media to explain how they were left in tears themselves over the programme.

One viewer stated on X - formerly known as Twitter: "Powerful beyond words."

Another raged at the scandal: "The damage done to people by the Post Office scandal is immeasurable. Emotional story highlights the horror, the pain, the loss endured by so many.

They added: "Jon Kay empathetic and sympathetic reporting, well done."

And a third viewer stated: "Suicide, people jailed,imprisoned, mentally broke. Watching this with tears in my eyes.

"These people need compensated immediately for their financial ruin. The Post Office have destroyed lives. People need jailed. #PostOfficeScandal"

But other viewers were left enraged by the show as they thought that the publicly funded broadcaster was "late" on covering the issue, after the ITV Drama was released months ago.

Another viewer noted: "#BBCBreakfast you're a bit late on the #PostOfficeScandal ITV nailed this months ago, stop jumping on the band wagon."

As a fifth added: "The BBC’s guilt-trip at not having had the nous or bottle to do what ITV did for the postmasters continues. But is a dip-in early morning “special edition” the right place for an in-depth analysis of this most appalling scandal? #BBCBreakfast."