BBC governors rap French & Saunders

BBC governors have ruled that the item, in which youngsters were given false bottoms and breasts to look like such celebrities as Paris Hilton, Abi Titmuss and Caprice should never be aired again.

They said the children were too young and vulnerable to take part in the sketch, which originally aired as part of the duo’s BBC1 Christmas special on December 27 last year.

It provoked a barrage of complaints, including one that the children had been ‘inappropriately sexualised’ by the sketch.

That claim was dismissed by the governors' programme complaints committee

However, they said there were ‘several problems’ with the item, adding: ‘The children were at a vulnerable age and were too young to participate fully. Some of the children appeared to be unhappy.

‘The children were used as part of the joke and their dignity was not protected during the sketch. The presence of parents was not sufficient to protect such young children.’

The viewer's complaint was initially rejected by the head of the BBC's editorial complaints unit, who said the children were ‘at the age when they start to dress up’.

But the programme complaints committee disagreed in a ruling published today, concluding that the sketch breached the BBC's editorial guidelines.

Published: 2 Nov 2006