"Blair is a tosser"

[faceless]

BLAIR IS A 'TOSSER' JIBE AIRED
By Fiona Cummins

A BBC radio presenter stunned an early evening audience by calling Tony Blair a "tosser" live on air. The word was in a text message from a listener seen by Jane Garvey on Radio Five Live's drive time shortly before 7pm. She read it out in full even though it was anonymous and abusive. It said: "Why don't you give airtime to the thousands of people who write to Blair and tell him what a tosser he is?" Co-host Peter Allen cut in and said: "I saw that and I thought, 'I won't use that word', and you have just gone and blown it."

Miss Garvey, wife of BBC football presenter Adrian Chiles, tried to make light of her blunder claiming she was trying to "even it up a bit". She had just interviewed schoolgirl Cathleen Sanderman, seven, of Dundee, who wrote a message of support for the PM saying she thought people were trying to bully him. But Mr Allen told Ms Garvey of her gaffe: "It's hardly late enough to use words like that."

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So it's bad to say tosser on an early evening radio show that is probably listened to by maybe 50000 people, but it's ok to say bitch, bastard and slag on Eastenders half an hour later, which is watched by millions? Gizza break!

Also, the article says that the presenter called him a tosser when she was simply reading someone else's message - it must have been a quiet news day, what with the war in Iraq, the situation in Darfur and all the other non-events going on globally.

[eefanincan]

[Skylace]

[maycm]

I often listen to 5 Live online at work, and heard this particular exchange.

Other than being mildly amused, I thought it of no great consequence.

[janbo1960]

its not like it not true is is???