THE BBC HAS apologised after receiving complaints in relation to jokes about the Queen’s sex life made during Don’t Make Me Laugh on Radio 4.
The comedy panel programme, which was broadcast on the Queen’s 90th birthday, included the subject “The Queen must have had sex at least four times”.
Today the BBC Trust published an official summary which noted that trustees considered that the output included “personal, intrusive and derogatory comments which had exceeded the expectations of the audience”. It added that:
Panellists made comments about the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh in a way that was personal, intrusive and demeaning.
Presenter David Baddiel introduced the subject and panellists, including comedian Russell Kane, then made sex-based jokes about the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh.
The broadcaster’s regulatory body had noted that the jokes breached the BBC’s editorial guidelines.
The BBC acknowledged it had received complaints from listeners following the programme in April and issued a formal apology on its Corrections and Clarifications section.
While BBC Radio 4 comedy is a broad church and often pushes boundaries, we would like to apologise for this broadcast of Don’t Make Me Laugh.
“We never intended for the scheduling of the programme to coincide with The Queen’s birthday and are sorry for the offence caused by its timing and content.”
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