'Arrogance and conceit' led to sacking of Chris Evans

"The overbearing arrogance'' and "gross negligence'' of the broadcaster Chris Evans led to his sacking as a presenter on Virgin Radio, a station he had once owned, the High Court was told yesterday.

Mr Evans broke his contract with the station by behaviour that amounted to misconduct, which brought it into disrepute and was "extremely damaging'' to the new owner, Scottish Media Group (SMG), said its counsel Geoffrey Vos, QC.

"When the star presenter publicly attacks the management of a radio station, ratings fall, advertisers' confidence falls and the share price falls," said Mr Vos. "All that happened. The public face of the radio station was saying that the business was being managed incompetently.''

The presenter left the company in June 2001 after an acrimonious dispute over the style of his show and his repeated absences, and he is now suing SMG for five million shares in the company – then worth about £8.5m – which he claims he was owed as part of the deal made when he sold the station, and for damages for breach of contract.

SMG is counter-suing for breach of contract.

The High Court was told that Mr Evans bought the station from Richard Branson in 1997 for £83m, although most of that was not his own money. He sold it to SMG two years later under a deal in which he received £70m, mostly in three tranches of shares over the subsequent years, while remaining contracted to present the breakfast show for £1.7m.

Mr Vos said that although Mr Evans was contracted to produce the show in accordance with the format agreed by the station, he repeatedly refused to do so and refused "point-blank'' to adhere to production schedules. He also failed to turn up on occasions because he was too hung over. "That is a breach of his contractual obligations, fair and square,'' said Mr Vos.

"Mr Evans made it abundantly clear ... that he would no longer accept any instructions from Virgin Radio, unless those instructions accorded with his own wishes," he added. "People in normal jobs don't get away with refusing to talk to their bosses.''

Mr Vos said Mr Evans had overlooked the fact that he was no longer the boss of the radio station. Although he had often refused to play the music that the station asked him to, he would not have been sacked for that alone.

Accusing Mr Evans of "overbearing arrogance and conceit'', Mr Vos said: "Mr Evans had decided that he would no longer be told what to do. If he wished to turn up for work he would; if he did not wish to turn up for work, he would not.''

Mr Vos maintained that although Mr Evans said he had begun drinking because of the stress that the management of the station imposed upon him, that stress had been entirely self-induced.

Christopher Pymont, QC, for Mr Evans, said his client believed the station had lost confidence in his judgement after a time in which he had regularly been consulted on matters regarding the station. He in turn lost confidence in the station.

He then heard that Virgin wanted to get rid of him and "took it very hard'', said Mr Pymont. He said: "What he wanted to do was the breakfast show and he found it very difficult to deal with the situation of contemplating his imminent dismissal. What he did was to go out and get very drunk with the consequence the next day he was not able to attend to do the show.''

It was, said Mr Pymont, "extremely wrong'' to say Mr Evans had been playing a power game in order to get them to do it his way.

"He did not feel he had any power and was helpless to prevent a decision,'' he said.

The company offered Mr Evans £3m in lieu of his contract, although his agent suggested a figure of £6-7m; this was rejected by SMG and he was subsequently dismissed.

Mr Pymont said Mr Evans rejected suggestions that he failed to adhere to the music schedule and had once been drunk on air. These had never been raised as issues at the time, he said. He also rejected the suggestion that he changed the format of the show after dismissing the team he worked with.

The hearing continues.