A BBC News anchor was caught raising her middle finger to the camera just as the live broadcast started in a hilarious clip.
Maryam Moshiri was raising her eyebrows and making the offending gesture right as the show’s iconic musical countdown sequence ended.
One of the network’s leading presenters, she realises her mistake, takes her finger down, and launches into the headlines.
She quickly took on a more serious expression and said: “Live from London, this is BBC News.” The clip has gone viral, being shared repeatedly on X, formerly Twitter.
It appears she may have been thrown off by the realisation she may have been spotted performing the gesture, as she then mispronounced “coronavirus” as “coronaverse” seconds later.
The faux pas happened on the world feed of BBC News at 12 noon UK time on Wednesday.
Some online joked they felt exactly the same about their own lines of work, while others claimed it was a sign the BBC was contemptuous of its audience.
Most, however, just acknowledged it as an amusing mistake by the presenter.
It comes as a discussion was sparked over how much the BBC licence fee should increase this April, if at all. The currently planned rise of nine percent was described as “very high” by culture secretary Lucy Fraser.
The licence fee is currently £159 per year but is due to increase by £15 to £173.30 in April.
Asked by Sky News’s Kay Burley whether the planned rise would not happen due to the government’s concerns, Ms Frazer replied: “I’m concerned that that’s a very high level. It’s a decision that I’m looking at the moment and we’ll be making an announcement on this very shortly.”
Pressed again on whether the rise would not go ahead, Ms Frazer replied: “Well, I’m concerned about that level of rise. So it’s something that we’re looking at very carefully.”
Ms Frazer said that while she believed the BBC provided a “fantastic service” and was an “amazing tool for soft power”, the “media landscape is changing” and the licence fee must be “fair to people”.
A below-inflation increase would require further cuts to staffing and programmes, such as last week’s decision to halve the staffing levels on Newsnight, the BBC’s flagship weekday current affairs programme.
The cuts involved getting rid of all its in-house reporting and moving the show to a discussion-only format.
The government is currently looking at whether to replace the £159-a-year licence fee with a new funding model after 2027, when the BBC’s current Royal Charter ends.
The BBC has been contacted for comment.
