'I don't work for the BBC' Monty Don hits back over impartiality claims in TV licence quip

express.co.uk:

Monty Don, 66, did not appear to be in good spirits when he took to Twitter last night to hit back at an account that asked him not to share his political views with fans online.Their tweet came after the BBC star utilised the social platform to share an opinionated piece about Prime Minister Boris Johnson by The Guardian.In the essay, writer Max Hastings asserted that Boris “is utterly unfit” to be the head of the government in the UK before going on to claim that he “cares for nothing but his own fame and gratification”.Along with a link to the article, Monty wrote in view of his 247,000 followers: “Every word is prescient.“I was Boris Johnson’s boss: he is utterly unfit to be prime minister | Max Hastings”And while the tweet received well over 1,300 likes, the Twitter user @HughNTJohnson didn’t seem to agree with the Americans Gardens author’s decision to use his social media account to discuss political matters.“No politics Monty, you work for BBC, tax payers don’t need to pay for opinions, just gardening,” they wrote.Clearly unamused by the remark, Monty tweeted out a fiery response, starting off with laying things bare on his working relationship with the Beeb.“For the record I don’t work for the BBC- i work for myself,” he wrote. (sic)“And I wasn’t aware you paid to read my comments on twitter.“However I defend to the death your right to disagree with them and express your own views- on any subject.”The user later apologised to Monty for their comment.Max laid into Boris in his opinionated piece, adding that while he’s known him since they both worked at the Daily Telegraph in the 1980s, the 57-year-old was deemed more of an entertainer than a solid candidate to be running for national office.And according to Max,.