‘There’s a side to Claudia-Liza that she really wouldn’t want out there’: As critics say ITN presenter tried to ‘destroy’ Dan Walker in ‘disgusting stitch-up’, now KATIE HIND learns of bombshell secret…

This was one of the strangest conversations Dan Walker has endured in his nearly 30-year broadcasting career. Just over a year after he arrived at Channel 5 in 2022 to host the daily news show alongside regular Channel 5 presenter Claudia-Liza Vanderpuije, he admitted airing a series of complaints about his bosses.

He assured that he was not part of this complaint.

In fact, the stories Vanderpuije told himself that day were about the problems he had experienced at ITN, the company that produced Channel 5’s news programmes, during the three years he had been in the job.

Walker, 49, then the network’s shiny new signing and fresh from the BBC, was shocked by her allegations, which also emerged in an online report. And he was ‘extremely understanding’ of the difficult times she was going through.

As my source explains: ‘When Claudia spoke to Dan and told him she had brought up the issues [about ITN]He was very kind. He had seen the story online, which he claimed was leaked by someone other than him.

‘Still, he was determined to keep an eye on her. Dan is a kind man who doesn’t want anyone to suffer. Of course he had divided loyalties – he was Channel 5’s new kid – but he was also very caring and compassionate towards his colleagues.’

But today, contrary to what Vanderpuije said, I can say that Walker was left ‘devastated’ by his name emerging as a central part of Walker’s complaint.

Friends believe he threw her under the bus in a bid to ‘destroy’ her as he pursued a £13 million payout from ITN and Channel 5 parent company Paramount.

A source said that when she spoke to Dan about the issues Claudia raised on ITN he was ‘very kind’ and ‘determined to look after her’.

Walker was ‘devastated’ when it emerged that, contrary to what Vanderpuije had said, he had been named as a central part of her complaint

And that meant Walker found herself a participant alongside two streaming giants in allegations of sexism, misogyny against a black woman, and workplace bullying.

In fact, the former Football Focus presenter was left stunned when he realized he had ‘gone to great lengths’ to ensure he too was dragged into the queue.

‘Dan was upset, of course he was,’ says a friend. ‘This was a shock to him, he’s been around for years, he knows how difficult the workplace can be. But he was caught off guard when he realized the truth a few months after Claudia-Liza had promised him that she was not part of his grievances.

‘But once he got his head together, he was ready to fight and have his say in court.’

The trial was scheduled to begin on 20 April at the London Court Center after failing to reach an agreement with ITN and Paramount. Furious at the allegations against him, Dan was ‘very, very keen’ for the truth to come out as he prepared to come forward.

And I can tell you it’s for a very good reason: damning evidence has surfaced in Vanderpuije’s papers proving that she had ‘information’ on Dan’s behalf.

Those familiar with the case say Vanderpuije, 47, was desperate for this evidence not to be made public; This is something that would have happened automatically had the full trial gone ahead.

To this end, his lawyer Jonathan Coad, who previously represented Phillip Schofield, went on the offensive when the hearing opened, in an attempt to prevent the pile of documents from being shared with journalists in the usual way.

My colleague who attended that hearing said there were secret meetings before anything was made public and it was chaotic.

And it worked. Four days later, before a single piece of evidence had been seen by anyone other than those directly involved in the case, Vanderpuije withdrew her allegations against Walker and stopped the case altogether; He agreed to an out-of-court settlement for much less than the £4 million Mr Coad last demanded.

After the case was dropped, he even released a statement confirming that he had ‘no intention of repeating or perpetuating’ the allegations.

“If the trial had continued, a side of Claudia-Liza would have come out that she really didn’t want to be there,” my source confirms.

‘It would have been made public, it would have been obvious that he decided to go after her. Perhaps the plan to frame Dan as a participant in the case was to scare his former employers into agreeing to a settlement, as Dan is Channel 5’s golden goose – who knows?

‘But that was so cruel.’

But perhaps more brutal for Walker was being denied a day in court.

Dan believed in the importance of telling the truth and wanted the details of what Claudia-Liza did to him to be heard by the public, his viewers and his fans.

Channel 5 News presenter Claudia-Liz Vanderpuije leaves London Court headquarters with barrister Christabel McCooey and barrister Jonathan Coad

‘He was completely stitched up and it was disgusting.’

After confirmation that it was all over, Walker thanked his newsroom colleagues and legal team. However, it is noteworthy that no approval was given to ITN. My insiders suggest this is because the situation was allowed to devolve into “an unnecessary, costly, painful, headline-grabbing lawsuit.” They say if the company’s CEO, Rachel Corp, had taken control early, it wouldn’t have turned into such a runaway train.

Ironically, Corp, who is a media lobbyist and chair of the Women in Journalism support group, is accused by her own staff of failing to take decisive action to prevent Walker from being scapegoated.

It’s not the first time he’s faced controversy. In 2020, as editor of ITV News, he sacked legendary newsreader Alastair Stewart for breaching editorial guidelines following an exchange with a black man (now known as X) on Twitter who quoted a speech from Shakespeare’s Measure For Measure that included the phrase ‘angry monkey’.

Now staff say this is just another case that has been allowed to ‘spiral’.

‘Dan paid the price, he was dragged because his name would make headlines,’ my source said.

‘Rachel is widely viewed within the company as a weak, indecisive leader who doesn’t achieve much, but others suffer as a result. ‘He can barely handle a company town hall meeting, let alone a situation like this.’

As for Walker’s next move, we’re told he won’t be taking any action of his own in retaliation.

‘After all this, Dan decided to be a bigger person,’ says a friend. ‘He is actually concerned about Claudia-Liza’s health and hopes she is recovering.’