The BBC presenter who has been suspended after allegations of paying a teenager for explicit pictures began a conversation with a young fan on Instagram while using love hearts and kisses in his messages, according to a report.

The person claimed they were just 17 years old when they were unexpectedly contacted by the host.

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In an exclusive interview with The Sun they said: “Looking back now it does seem creepy because he was messaging me when I was still at school. In light of everything now, I feel shocked because as a broadcaster it is a name everyone would trust. I had no reason to think it was anything beyond that at that time.”

The presenter’s first message to the teenager was delivered in October 2018.

Without ever having spoken to them before, he sent a message to them with a love heart emoji.

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The teenager, who had been following the broadcaster on Instagram for months before making contact, claimed they were shocked to get a message from such a well-known BBC employee.

They added: “I was surprised he had messaged me out of the blue but was excited as I knew who he was. He sent a love heart emoji to me and I was taken aback. Looking back now at my reply I can tell I did not think anything of it because of my age. I was just thinking of it ­innocently because I had a keen interest in their line of work.”

“I did think it was a little strange that he used a kiss at the end but, ultimately, I was not reading into these messages in that way and so did not think more about it at the time.”

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The presenter returned with another message after the teen responded, carrying on the chat.

The youngster, who is now 22 and holds down a successful job, added: “After my reply, he then asked me if I was OK. After he sent it he sent me another love heart emoji. I asked why he was asking after me and he said he was just being polite and put another kiss at the end.”