What Jermaine Jenas' wife Ellie did when he told her he'd been sacked for sending inappropriate texts to other women
Jermaine Jenas has revealed how his wife Ellie reacted to finding out he had been sacked by the BBC for sending 'inappropriate' messages to female colleagues.
Jenas, 41, was axed by the BBC earlier this week after concerns were raised about his workplace conduct.
The former England and Tottenham footballer, who presented The One Show and regularly appeared on Match of the Day, was sacked following an internal investigation by the BBC.
"We can confirm that he is no longer part of our presenting line up," a BBC spokesperson said.
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Speaking on talkSPORT after the news of his departure broke, Jenas said he was "unhappy" with the decision and would consult his lawyers before taking any further action.
But on Friday night, he issued a public apology – admitting he sent inappropriate texts to female colleagues at the BBC despite being married to his wife Ellie for 13 years.
"I am ashamed, and I am deeply sorry," Jenas told The Sun.
"I have let myself down, my family, friends and colleagues down, and I owe everyone an apology – especially the women with whom I was messaging. I am so, so sorry.
"I am sorry for what I have put them through. I think it would be fair to say I have a problem. I know I self-sabotage and have a self-destructive streak when it comes to my relationship especially, and I know I need help. And I am getting help.
"I have made a lot of mistakes, and I am asking myself a lot of questions at the moment. I know there's a lot of work that needs to be done, and it will be hard."
After being informed of the allegations against him, Jenas admitted he lied to his wife in a bid to stall and "find a way out of this mess".
He was fired five days later via a video call while on a family holiday with his wife and three children.
"It was just a grim situation. You're having to sit there and listen to what you've said. I'm not proud of anything," added Jenas.
"It's embarrassing, and obviously there's four people there on a Zoom call, basically, just listening to all of this, and reading out my messages. I think I was in shock at the time, there was a lot to process.
"But I'm the married one, I'm at fault, and I was sort of playing this blame game in my head. The overriding panic by a mile was that I could lose my family."
Jenas also opened up on the moment he decided to admit his behaviour to his wife after finding out he would be sacked.
He said: "I was obviously hoping that I maybe would have got a suspension of some sort. I had to tell her by Monday evening because I knew then that I'd been fired.
"I just said, 'I've been sacked from the BBC'.
"She said, 'What for?', and I said, 'For sending text messages that weren't appropriate to two girls'.
"Ellie is absolutely raging. She's human. When I see her now, she is just making sure the children are OK."
Jenas added that he has been kicked out of the bedroom the couple shared at their home in Hertfordshire, and also admitted he did not know if his wife would forgive him for his actions.
Despite admitting his behaviour was inappropriate, Jenas insists he did nothing illegal and is now considering taking legal action against the BBC over its handling of the crisis.
"I did nothing illegal - these were inappropriate messages between two consenting adults," he added.
Topics: Match Of The Day, Football, England, Tottenham Hotspur
Rory O'Callaghan