Lady Gaga's X Factor outfit gets viewers' knickers in a twist

Hundreds of viewers have complained after Lady Gaga performed on The X Factor in a skimpy outfit made of shells and flesh-coloured underwear.

Around 200 viewers contacted broadcasting watchdog Ofcom with another 60 approaching ITV after Sunday's performance which was shown before the 9pm watershed.

An Ofcom spokesman said: "We will assess all the complaints received on this issue before deciding whether to investigate."

An ITV spokeswoman said: "We do not believe Lady Gaga's performance was inappropriate for the family audience of the X Factor Results show, which has an established tradition of featuring performances from the biggest music stars.

"Lady Gaga is well known for her highly individual performance style."

It is not the first time the hit ITV show has run into trouble. The 2010 final, which featured Christina Aguilera and her backing dancers in a racy routine, was described as being 'at the very margin of acceptability' by Ofcom.

A report said the 'sexualised' pre-watershed scenes sparked 2,868 complaints to the media regulator after Aguilera donned a short black dress while her female dancers, who were bent over chairs, wore suspenders, bra tops, fishnet stockings and basques in the raunchy routine.

 

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.