BBC boss says sorry for Corbett insult

BBC boss says sorry for Corbett insult
BBC boss says sorry for Corbett insult (Image credit: PA Archive/Press Association Ima)

A BBC executive has apologised 'unreservedly' to Ronnie Corbett after he made a foul-mouthed reference to the veteran star to staff. The editor of The One Show sent an email to colleagues after the Two Ronnies star cancelled an appearance on the BBC One evening programme in which he called Corbett a "little ****". Doug Carnegie, the editor, forwarded an email containing the insult to the production team of more than 60 people after a guest booker told him of Corbett's no-show. A source from The One Show said: "He did make the comment in the heat of the moment and he has apologised to Ronnie unreservedly." Carnegie contacted Corbett's agent as soon as it emerged the email had been made public, when it was leaked to a newspaper. He has emailed an apology but has not spoken to the star. Carnegie is due to leave The One Show, where he has worked since 2007, in a few weeks. It is not known if Carnegie will face any punishment from the BBC for his actions. Corbett was one of the BBC's best-loved stars in the 1970s thanks to his comic partnership with Ronnie Barker. He also starred in his own sitcom Sorry. A BBC spokeswoman said: "We do not comment on private or leaked correspondence."

Patrick McLennan

Patrick McLennan is a London-based journalist and documentary maker who has worked as a writer, sub-editor, digital editor and TV producer in the UK and New Zealand. His CV includes spells as a news producer at the BBC and TVNZ, as well as web editor for Time Inc UK. He has produced TV news and entertainment features on personalities as diverse as Nick Cave, Tom Hardy, Clive James, Jodie Marsh and Kevin Bacon and he co-produced and directed The Ponds, which has screened in UK cinemas, BBC Four and is currently available on Netflix. 

An entertainment writer with a diverse taste in TV and film, he lists Seinfeld, The Sopranos, The Chase, The Thick of It and Detectorists among his favourite shows, but steers well clear of most sci-fi.