BBC rapped over swearing

The BBC has been criticised for allowing the word 'bastard' to be aired in afternoon comedy programmes.

Watchdogs ruled that ten-year-old repeats of Have I Got News For You, the Eighties sitcom Just Good Friends and My Hero could all cause offence.

The Broadcasting Standards Commission said parents found the word 'severe', and that BBC1 should pay more attention to the content of programmes originally made for evenings when they are rerun earlier in the day.

My Hero, which stars Ardal O'Hanlon as a suburban superhero, attracted seven complaints.

The BBC said the strong language "reflected the extraordinary circumstances in which the characters often found themselves".

But the commission upheld the complaints.

Have I Got News For You and Just Good Friends attracted just one complaint each, but the watchdogs again agreed with the criticism.

However, the commission did not uphold complaints about the word 'fuck' in BBC2's Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps, broadcast just one minute after the 9pm watershed.

The BBC accepted it was shown too early, so watchdogs decided they did not have to make a ruling.

Published: 31 Dec 2002