Bradford accent
‘baffled’
the BBC

A member of the public complained about the BBC2 show Bradford: City Of Dreams, which was broadcast at 8pm on Thursday May 9, after a scene in which entrepreneur Naveed Khan swore.

In the clip, which went out at around 8.30pm, Mr Khan, who was struggling to understand what one of his colleagues was telling him, was heard to say: “I don’t understand ****ing Argentina language.”

A report by broadcasting watchdog Ofcom said Mr Khan used the offensive language “under his breath to some extent” but the words were “clearly audible”.

The BBC told Ofcom that although the word was “reasonably clear, Mr Khan did say the word under his breath to some extent. This, coupled with Mr Khan’s strong Bradford accent, meant that the word was not noted when the programme was reviewed for editorial and compliance purposes”.

Meanwhile, a BBC Breakfast presenter has told of the “abuse” she gets from viewers because of her northern accent and the prejudice she encountered from TV bosses before she landed her on-screen role.

Stephanie McGovern, who presents business news on the programme, said her “strong northern accent” still elicits disparaging remarks from viewers.

McGovern, originally from Middlesbrough, told the Radio Times: “Despite being a business journalist at the BBC for 10 years, working behind the scenes on our high-profile news programmes, I 
was viewed by some in the organisation to be ‘too common for telly’.

“I’ve had tweets questioning whether I really did go to university because surely I would have lost my accent if I did; a letter suggesting, very politely, that I get correction therapy; and an email saying I should get back to my council estate and leave the serious work to the clever folk.”

She said: “It’s inevitable that not everyone will like me. All presenters deal with that. What’s scary is the ignorance about what having a regional accent means.”