Brooke Warne has lashed out at Channel Nine for going ahead with a telemovie on her father Shane Warne, who passed away earlier this year. Brooke, the eldest daughter, feels the plans to dramatise her father’s life are insensitive and ‘beyond disrespectful’.

“Do any of you have any respect for Dad? Or his family? Who did so much for Channel Nine and now you want to dramatise his life and our family (sic) life 6 months after he passed away?” Brooke, the eldest daughter, wrote on Instagram.

However, the Nine Network, where Warne was employed for over two decades, feels the two-part miniseries will be a fitting tribute to the man. “We have enormous respect for Shane and all his achievements, and our hope is all Australians including Warnie’s family will feel the programme honours his legacy and life,” said Nine Network spokesperson to The Guardian.

The pre-production for the series started just a couple of weeks after Warne’s demise and they have also finalised the actor to portray the leg-spinner in the series.

James Erskine, the long-time manager of Warne, was also not pleased with this idea, as he said, “He’s only been dead for a couple of months and for them to turn this around and think about doing some sensational thing, well they should be ashamed of themselves.”

Warne worked for Channel Nine as a cricket broadcaster after hanging up his boots in 2007. Comfortably the greatest leg-spinner the game has ever, Warne finished his career with over 700 wickets. Warne’s career was littered with numerous scandals, from match-fixing to drug consumption, but none of these had any effect on his bowling. 

Warne died of cardiac arrest when he was vacationing on the island of Koh Samui. The iconic Southern Stand in the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) was renamed in his honour. Only two days ago, his family shared a heartfelt tribute on what would have been his 53rd birthday.

“A legacy gives you a perspective on what’s important. It is about the richness of an individual’s life, including what they accomplished and the impact they had on people and places. Shane’s Legacy will live on. Happy birthday – always in our hearts,” the tweet read from Warne’s official handle.

Lead Image: Cricket Australia