Was Emma Barnett's car crash Kemi Badenoch interview the final straw? Controversial BBC presenter quits Radio 4's Today programme amid rumours of tensions with co-star

As it was revealed Emma Barnett is set to leave the BBC's flagship Today Programme yesterday, coming just 24 hours after a heated interview with Kemi Badenoch, the timing was hard to miss.The 41-year-old, who has hosted the show for just two years, will instead front her own current affairs programme following months of turmoil amid a deeply strained relationship with co-presenter Nick Robinson.The former Woman's Hour host is said to have become increasingly frustrated with an 'overbearing' Mr Robinson, with the two going a whole 90 days without presenting a single programme together.As sources revealed she is set to depart the early morning show 'within weeks', speculation has mounted over a rather testy interview she conducted with the Conservative leader on Thursday.The segment is said to have created tension before it even began – with many listeners surprised the questioning was handed to Ms Barnett, instead of Mr Robinson, a former BBC political editor.Sources have not clarified whether this was a decision taken by bosses, or a personal request from Ms Barnett, but it is said to have taken Mr Robinson by surprise.He said during the programme: 'When I was told I was doing The Gruffalo this morning, I thought I had got the best item on the programme.'The interview itself was less than warm-hearted. The ten-minute slot was characterised by tough questions from Ms Barnett and the two women repeatedly talking over one another while accusing the other of doing so. Emma Barnett (right), 41, is set to leave the Today Programme 'within weeks' after tension with co-presenter Nick Robinson (left) and a car-crash Kemi Badenoch interview The 41-year-old, who has hosted the show for just two years, will instead front her own current affairs programmeFocusing on welfare v defence spending, the opening question embodied the tone of the exchange, with Ms Barnett asking: 'Are you willing to make people homeless in the name of national defence?'After it was over, those on the left applauded the presenter for her no-nonsense approach, while those on the right accused her of having got the tone of the interview completely wrong.Although seen as a car-crash by some, BBC sources are said to insist Ms Barnett's departure is completely unrelated and has been planned for some time.It is understood that in addition to tensions with her co-host, the early mornings took a toll, especially given her recent health struggles with endometriosis.Having filmed a documentary, Fighting Endometriosis, for BBC Two, she was absent from Today for some time after being rushed to hospital to undergo a hysterectomy and recovering at home for several weeks.The news of her departure also comes only a week after Amol Rajan presented the programme for the last time.It's not a good look for Today, especially given the reports of the relationship between the former Woman's Hour presenter and Mr Robinson.The Mail on Sunday previously revealed she had lodged a complaint about the Today Programme veteran, calling him ‘overbearing’, when she joined the show in April 2024.Insiders said the matter was resolved with no action taken and there had been no suggestion Nick had done anything wrong.Sources were keen to present the issue as nothing more than 'clashing egos' – but other reports suggested the two fundamentally cannot get on. Ms Barnett is said to be keen to get started on her 'next challenge', understood to be a current affairs programme that has been in 'long discussions' with BBC bosses.She already hosts her own weekly podcast, Ready to Talk with Emma Barnett. Since joining the BBC, Ms Barnett has made headlines with her tough interview style.In May 2017, she rose to national attention following a car crash interview with then-Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, prompting abuse from his supporters.During the segment in the run-up to the 2017 General Election, Mr Corbyn was left frantically searching his iPad after he was unable to say how much his own party's pledge to extend free childcare would cost.The floundering Labour leader was speechless when faced with the question about his flagship policy.Listeners branded the interview 'painful' and 'excruciating' on Twitter, while many of his supporters lashed out at Ms Barnett.Mr Corbyn himself condemned the abuse, telling supporters: 'It is totally and absolutely completely unacceptable for anyone to throw abuse at anyone else.'Journalists do ask difficult questions and journalists do a job that does require asking difficult questions sometimes in difficult circumstances.'A separate incident in June 2024 saw her condemned for a wider BBC reluctance to call Hamas terrorists, after she described how a 75-year-old grandmother of six was snatched at gunpoint on October 7.She said: 'On October 7 last year Ada Sagi's life changed forever. She was having a morning coffee at home in Nir Oz kibbutz on the border with Gaza, when suddenly several men working for Hamas burst into her home and forced her barefoot by gunpoint onto a motorbike and took her hostage.'Ms Barnett went on to say that 116 hostages taken by Hamas were still unaccounted for. The weekly audience for Today now stands at 5.73 million, according to industry figures. While it has declined since the 7.5 million it reached in 2016, its performance is relatively stable.A source at the BBC said: 'Today has a great, fairly new editor, with loads of new ideas and vision.'There's always rumour and speculation about Today and its presenters.'