The BBC's presenters and reporters are usually pretty buttoned up, so Susanna Reid clearly felt that the Oscars was one occasion when she could push the boat out.

Tasked with reporting for the Beeb from the red carpet, Reid appeared to have taken tips from her predecessor Rosie Millard who famously almost fell out of her dress while covering the ceremony seven years ago.

Reid's own outfit, a full-length white, Grecian column dress, was certainly elegant but plunged daringly to reveal rather more than a suggestion of cleavage as she interviewed the stars.

Scroll down for more...

Susanna Reid carries on the tradition set seven years earlier by Rosie Millard by wearing a daring dress to cover the Oscars for the BBC

Held together under her bust by a single slim piece of black material, it also gaped racily at the sides to show almost all of the mother-of-three's back.

Quite what the regular viewers of BBC Breakfast would have made of it this morning is anyone's guess.

Scroll down for more...

BBC reporter Susanna Reid giggles on the red carpet as she reports from the Oscars' red carpet - complete with her own scene-stealing dress

The dress also bore more than a passing resemblance to the dress worn by ITV's Holly Willoughby on Dancing on Ice, which sparked complaints for its extremely low neckline.

At 37, Reid has 10 years on Willoughby but clearly felt that she had to up her game to match the stars, who mostly dazzled in their elegant, designer outfits.

During one live report, she said: "Did you know Helen Mirren was wearing £1 million worth of diamonds? I had to put some bling on myself."

A BBC spokeswoman said later that she had no details of the dress and refused to comment on claims it was risque.

Scroll down for more...

The Grecian column dress had racy side splits which left little to the imagination

The Oscars can prove somewhat of a banana skin for reporters as they try to glam up without going too overboard.

In 2001, Millard, then BBC arts correspondent, famously wore a dramatic Vivienne Westwood creation to report on the ceremony in 2001.

It enhanced her cleavage to such an extent that Michael Buerk was prompted to say live on the news: "That was Rosie Millard and the best supporting dress."

Millard then misguidedly posed for pictures, still wearing the gown and slightly worse for wear, the morning after the ceremony.

Within hours, they had been sent worldwide and she was making the news herself - for her disastrous outfit.

Some commentators claimed it damaged her reputation as a reporter and it has dogged her ever since.

Scroll down for more...

Playful: Reid cheekily looks over her shoulder during one report from Los Angeles

Fortunately Reid managed to avoid any embarrassing "wardrobe malfunctions", unlike her predecessor.

Perhaps the presenter and reporter was also feeling the pressure after rival Kate Silverton's Oscars coverage last year.

Silverton, also 37, wore a bright red £9,000 Kruszynska gown for the ceremony in Los Angeles in 2007.

But hopefully Reid will take more care of her dress, because the scarlet creation ended up being ruined.

Silverton said later: "I managed to spill coffee and an iced bun over that lovely dress and I remember thinking 'That's just me, calamity Kate, what would my mother say?'"

Both Reid and Silverton are regular fixtures on the BBC as main presenters on BBC Breakfast. Reid is also the regular newsreader on Sunday AM.

After studying politics, philosophy and law at Bristol University, she started her career at BBC Radio Bristol before becoming a reporter for Five Live and then shifting into television.

She is now into her 10th year at the BBC, despite juggling work around her three children - all boys under the age of five.

Her partner is sports broadcaster Dominic Cotton.

Scroll down for more...

Reid's outfit bore more than a passing resemblance to Holly Willoughby's gown, which sparked complaints from viewers when she wore it on Dancing on Ice

It is not the first time Reid has surprised viewers while reporting on a story.

During an interview with Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber two years ago to publicise his programme How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria?, she had to sing on camera.

Her rendition of The Hills Are Alive was a gallant attempt, although it did prompt the composer to say she would need two years of tuition before singing in public.

And not surprisingly, her fellow colleagues found it hilarious and insisted on playing the clip repeatedly on BBC Breakfast, much to Reid's embarrassment.