BBC Orders Fast-Track Investigation Into Racial Slur Broadcast At BAFTA Awards, Calls It 'Serious Mistake'

Recently, the BBC apologised for airing a racial slur shouted by a guest with Tourette syndrome at the BAFTAs. The British broadcaster apologised for not editing out the racial slur from its BBC One broadcast. The show was aired around two hours later, and the offensive word remained on BBC iPlayer overnight before the ceremony was taken down.

Now, it has ordered a quick investigation into how it failed to edit out the racial slur from its broadcast.

BBC orders investigation into BAFTA broadcast slur

The BBC called it a "serious mistake" and would act quickly, per Reuters.

"The Director-General (Tim Davie) has instructed the Executive Complaints Unit to complete a fast-tracked investigation and provide a full response to complainants," a spokesperson said in a statement.

British Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy welcomed the probe and said that broadcasting of the slur is "completely unacceptable and harmful."

The BBC must ensure that this never happens again," Nandy said in a statement.

BAFTA racist slur incident

During the BAFTA 2026 awards ceremony, the N-word slur was shouted by Tourette’s syndrome campaigner John Davidson as black actors Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo were presenting the award for Best Visual Effects to James Cameron's Avatar: Fire and Ash on stage at London’s Royal Festival Hall. Both remained calm and composed and continued to do their job.

Later, BAFTA issued a statement, apologising to the two actors and taking "full responsibility" for putting their guests in a "very difficult situation."

“We will learn from this, and keep inclusion at the core of all we do, maintaining our belief in film and storytelling as a critical conduit for compassion and empathy,” it stated further.