I'm A Celebrity 2014: Jack Whitehall criticises 'reality TV snob' Michael Buerk for joining show

The comedian called out the BBC news presenter after he branded BBC3 content 'the embarrassing end of drivel' earlier this year

Michael Buerk has hit out at recently-axed channel BBC3 and TV presenters who 'cry ageism' (Getty Images)

Jack Whitehall has criticised Michael Buerk for appearing on ITV’s I’m A Celebrity months after he branded BBC3 a “low brow” channel.

The comedian called out the BBC news presenter after he said BBC3 was the “embarrassing end of drivel” earlier this year.

Whitehall tweeted: “Look forward to seeing him eat kangaroo b*llocks with Gemma Collins from TOWIE.”

Buerk also dismissed BBC3 shows such as Snog, Marry, Avoid as “cutting-edge tripe” after director general Tony Hall announced BBC3 would become an online-only channel in March.

Whitehall was among a number of celebrities who called to save the channel after Hall’s announcement.

“I really hope reports that the BBC may kill BBC3 are just rumours. [Their] support of new comedy in particular is vital! #saveBBC3,” he wrote.

Buerk will enter the Australian jungle this weekend along with nine other celebrities including TV presenter Melanie Sykes, US reality TV star Kendra Wilkinson and model Nadia Forde.

“I’m a frightful snob and perhaps it’s time for me to take myself less seriously,” he said about taking part in the ITV show.

“I am very sniffy about reality TV and when they first approached me, I thought they were joking. Why on earth would I want to do something like this?”

Buerk, who currently presents BBC Radio 4’s The Moral Maze, has been a respected BBC news reader since 1983.

His reporting on the Ethiopian famine inspired the original Band Aid charity record in 1984.

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