Man mistaken for IT expert and interviewed live on BBC to sue after 17 years

Guy Goma, who went viral after being interviewed by mistake live on BBC News, has said he is planning to sue the corporation over a lack of royalties originating from the clip. Goma arrived at the corporation’s headquarters in 2006 for a job interview as a data cleanser but he ended up being interviewed on BBC News 24 after the corporation staff confused him with an IT journalist called Guy Kewney.

The IT journalist had been booked to speak about trademark rights and music, particularly a legal dispute between Apple Corps and Apple Computers. Goma looked surprised from the start but bravely answered questions from presenter Karen Bowerman. The viral blunder has since been viewed over five million times on the BBC’s YouTube channel but Goma said he is yet to receive any royalties from the interview.

“I contacted them, they didn’t answer me. Did they pay me for that interview? No,” Goma told the Accidental Celebrities podcast. “They are waiting for me to take them to the court.”

Podcast hosts Josh Pieters and Archie Manners subsequently asked Goma if he had plans to sue the broadcaster. He replied: “I’m going to go … because of the money they made on it and they didn’t give me any single penny.”

He said that the BBC has been using the clip for 17 years with “no penny to me”, adding “that clip made them richer”.

Goma further disclosed how he was given make-up at BBC studios ahead of the interview. “I said ‘excuse me, I don’t need that, I just came for the job interview, I don’t need make-up’.”

Goma said he told the BBC after the interview that it had interviewed the wrong person. He said he did not hear from the broadcaster for a week and he missed the job interview. The BBC has not yet commented.

Goma said he is also planning to write a book called Wrong Guy.