BBC clears Ross of breaching standards with crude Nigella comment

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Ross told the TV cook she was a 'Milf' (mother I'd like to f***) during the interview on his BBC1 chat show Friday Night With Jonathan Ross.

He did not spell out what the acronym stood for - but many viewers would have been aware of its meaning.

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TV presenter Jonathan Ross was cleared of breaching standards by using a crude acronym during an interview with voluptuous television cook Nigella Lawson

In the same interview, broadcast in December 2006, Ross insulted vegetarians by saying: "Serve them f***ing right" when Lawson mentioned they would be unable to eat a Christmas dinner containing roast potatoes cooked in goose fat.

He also stated that if anyone offered him goose for Christmas lunch he would "s*** on their couch".

A viewer complained to the BBC about the use of "unacceptable foul language and inappropriate references".

Ross referred to Nigella Lawson as 'Milf' and used foul language throughout the show

But the corporation's editorial standards committee did not uphold the complaint, ruling Ross's comments and use of sexual innuendo were "part of a litany of grotesque over-reactions which derived its comic effect precisely from its outrageous exaggeration".

The committee said that when referring to Lawson as a "Milf", Ross "did not spell out what the 'f' actually stood for... this kept it within the bounds of acceptability for that audience in that slot".

This is not the only time Ross has used the phrase - he described Madonna as "the original Milf" during the BBC's Live Earth coverage.

The committee said Ross had a "very well-established reputation for robust humour and language".

And it concluded: "As to audience expectation regarding the general content of the programme, the committee was aware that this was a post-watershed programme that was firmly set in adult viewing time after 10.30pm.

"It recognised that the style and format of the programme, which had been running since 2001, would have been well known to the audience watching. It was therefore satisfied that the programme content had been within the audience's expectations."

The BBC sparked outrage when it was revealed to be paying Ross a reported £18 million over three years.