BBC anchor ‘flipped the bird’ live on air. Here’s what really happened

BBC anchor Maryam Moshiri, who ‘flipped the bird’ (showed middle finger) live on air earlier this month, without, however, knowing that she was live, said on Friday she was ‘glad’ that the full video of the incident was out on social media, as it showed what she said in her apology – that she was having ‘a bit of fun’ with her team during the countdown to the show.

Moshiri, however, clarified that the full video was not released by her or the BBC.

“So someone released the full video! It wasn’t the BBC who released this and it certainly wasn’t me! But in a way I think I’m glad this is out there, as it shows I WAS having a bit of a joke with the crew during the countdown,” Moshiri, one of the network’s chief presenters, wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

The Iranian-born host added: “Again, so sorry it went out on air. It was meant to be a private laugh.”

What does the video show?

The clip begins with the traditional BBC countdown; with each passing second, Moshiri gestures with her fingers the seconds left for the broadcast to begin. Then, with just one second left for the show to go on air, she produced the moment that instantly went viral on social media.

Suddenly, it dawns upon her that the gesture went live on air. Composing herself, the BBC anchor opens the broadcast: “Live from London, this is BBC News.”

What was her explanation?

On December 7, a day after the gaffe, Moshiri took to X to apologise, and explained what really went down.

“When we got to one, I turned my finger around as a joke and did not realise this would be caught on camera. I wasn’t ‘flipping the bird’ at viewers or even a person really. It was a silly joke that was meant for a small number of my mates,” she wrote.