Ross slammed over awards show jibe - Dec 7 2007
The National Union of Journalists has hit out at Jonathan Ross after the host of the British Comedy Awards said he was worth "1,000 BBC journalists".

Ross, who earns a reported £6 million a year from the corporation, made the quip while also joking about the spate of TV scandals.

His comment came as the corporation prepares to close 2,500 posts across the BBC.

Ross also said organisers of the show were "more nervous than the teddies at a Sudanese branch of Hamleys" while TV presenter Fern Britton also caused controversy when she called a giant bear which came out on stage "Mohammed" in reference to the jailing of Gillian Gibbons.

Jeremy Dear, NUJ general secretary, said of Ross’s statement about his worth: "Comments made by Jonathan Ross last night are obscene as they come at a time when thousands of his fellow BBC colleagues are facing losing their jobs.

"Whilst it may be a joke to him, the reality is not a laughing matter to those who have the axe hanging over their heads."

Viewers may never get to see the awards after they were not broadcast live for the first time in their history.

ITV "suspended" the coverage after it discovered that viewers in the 2005 show were ringing to vote for the People’s Choice award after Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway had already won.

Ross pours scorn on comedy’s big night - Dec 6 2007
British Comedy Awards host Jonathan Ross heaped more embarrassment on the event as it went ahead without being broadcast.

The controversy that has dogged the broadcasting industry over faked phone-ins and ITV’s decision to "suspend" broadcast of Britain’s most watched awards after they were caught up in the scandal, dominated the night.

Jonathan, hosting the awards, joked to the audience: "Up until two days ago we were holding this event in an open prison. We’re still in the dock but (Chris) Langham is free," he said of the comedy actor, who was jailed for downloading child porn.

He added: "We don’t know for sure if this will ever go out or not so if you win an award this year, like most of the telephone votes it doesn’t really count and you will still be charged."

The BBC DJ and chat-show host also made light of how much he was paid by the BBC saying: "I’m worth 1,000 BBC journalists," and joked that at least he had not fled like "Ant and Dec".

He said of the ceremony: "This year’s awards are going to be whiter than white. They’re whiter than Jim Davidson’s dream pub."

He added that the votes this year had been thoroughly researched with the same forensic attention as a "Portuguese police investigation".

Ross joked that TV bosses had cancelled the TV People’s Choice vote because they "believe people are scum and don’t care what they think".

Jonathan’s show loses listeners - Oct 26 2007
BBC favourite Jonathan Ross has lost 200,000 listeners in the last three months, new figures reveal.

The star, 46, who has come under fire for a reported BBC pay packet of £18 million over three years, pulls in 3.05 million listeners to his Radio 2 show.

Figures released on Thursday by radio ratings body Rajar show a fall of 200,000 from the previous three months (April to June), when Ross enjoyed 3.25 million listeners.

The star has also dropped 110,000 listeners to his Saturday morning slot since this time last year, when he had 3.16 million.