THREE of the South's top presenters were today beginning their legal battle against the BBC after they were sacked for setting up their own media company.

Ex-BBC South Today news reader Alex Lush, her husband James and business partner Richard Williams - both former Radio Solent presenters - are taking the company to an employment tribunal claiming they were unfairly dismissed.

Newsreader Alex Lush, who was only weeks away from giving birth when she lost her job, is also accusing the BBC of sexual discrimination.

Alex, 27, who now has a young son, Jasper, was due to go on maternity when her contract was terminated and believes the company took advantage of her situation.

Her sacking was the latest twist in a bitter row between BBC bosses and the two Radio Solent presenters who had been sacked in August for starting their own media training and consultancy company, called Great Beginnings.

Alex was then fired for faxing a number of phone numbers to her husband, which bosses claimed contravened the terms of her contract.

Alex said: "They sacked me on the last day of work. Had I not been taking maternity leave, would they have done it then

"The way they handled it was appalling. There was no warning and I was given no opportunity to right any wrong."

A statement of claim has today been sent to the Employment Tribunal in Southampton in which husband James says they did all they could to ensure there was no conflict of interest between their BBC jobs and their media company.

James, 32, said: "This could have been resolved so quickly and everyone is staggered by how they are handling this. Companies like the BBC cannot be allowed to steam roller over people.

"We are doing this because we want to see justice done and so the public will understand why we are no longer working for the BBC."

Alex is hoping to be reinstated at her old TV job. She said: "I love working there, I love the people and I want my job back but after the way they have handled this something has to be done."

A spokesman for the BBC said: "The BBC takes its responsibilities for insuring the complete impartiality of its journalists very seriously and we have very clear guidelines on what is and what is not permissible.

"However, we feel it would be inappropriate to comment on these individual cases in advance of the industrial tribunal."

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