A veteran radio presenter has apologized to colleagues after repeatedly using a homophobic slur during a meeting with editors and producers.
The 65-year-old broadcaster, who has worked at BBC Radio since 1987, allegedly used the offensive term in the company of six staff members last week.
Witnesses said the slur was used as he recounted an incident in which someone else had directed the term at him. Several colleagues were reportedly shocked by the language.
Following the meeting, an editor apologized to other staff members on his behalf. The presenter later held his own meeting to apologize face-to-face to the full team upon learning some had been offended.
One account described a mixed reaction in the room, with roughly half those present stunned and others laughing. A growing backlash has since emerged over concerns the comment could deeply offend.
The broadcaster's employer declined to confirm whether disciplinary action is being considered.
The incident follows a separate controversy at the same station involving another presenter who stepped back from his programme in June. That individual had been named in an investigation linked to a businessman accused of sexual misconduct involving young women in the late 1990s.
The businessman, a former newspaper owner, has strongly denied the allegations. The presenter has said he has no recollection of the encounter in question and stated it was not part of his role.
The broadcaster at the center of the latest incident joined the station in 1997 after a decade at Radio 1. He has hosted the breakfast show, co-presented with several colleagues, and led call-in programmes.
His tenure has included coverage of four Olympic Games, three World Cups, and every general election and referendum since 1997. He was inducted into the Radio Academy Hall of Fame in 2014.
Beyond radio, he has hosted major television programmes including consumer investigations, current affairs broadcasts, and a long-running family reunion series now in its fourteenth series.
