BBC Apologizes For 'Joke' About 'Curing' Lesbian Anchor

The British Broadcasting Corporation has apologized for a tasteless, homophobic "joke" about "curing" a lesbian anchor broadcast on the network's Radio 5 Live program Fighting Talk on Saturday. 

A live broadcast on BBC Radio 5 Live saw comedian Bob Mills trot out the tired, homophobic "joke" that he could easily turn out lesbian Clare Balding, an award-winning sports anchor who led the BBC's coverage of both the London Olympics and Paralympics last summer, straight if he just had a few minutes alone in a bedroom with her. 

In a segment called "Defend the Indefensible," Mills said that if he could just get "20 minutes with her and I'm pretty sure I could turn around Clare Balding."

In case that wasn't enough, Mills went on to call Balding a "horse woman" who "appreciates power between her thighs," according to the Guardian. He wrapped his comments by declaring "We all know, there is no woman that can't be cured."

While regular Radio 5 Live commentator Colin Murray tried to diffuse the controversy by noting that the satirical segment is meant to "make a "mockery of idiot views, as that certainly is," on Monday, the BBC offered a mea culpa. 

"Fighting Talk is a live programme and on this occasion we got it wrong," said the network in a statement reported by the Guardian. "The 'Defend the Indefensible' item was inappropriate and as such we have removed this short section of the programme from iPlayer. We would again like to apologise to anyone who was offended by the programme."

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