"Tell her to get stuffed," typed Hazlewood, thinking his response was only going to his colleague. Alas, he hit 'Reply All' so his message also went to Mrs Kelly.

3. ‘Yours was yum’

Solicitor Bradley Chait received an email from his girlfriend Claire Swire fondly remembering a recent romp where she had performed a sex act on him. Recalling the inevitable conclusion of such an act, she wrote: "Yours was yum." Chait proudly shared the email with some friends, who shared it with their friends. Millions ended up reading the gory details.

4. Human Relations

Senior personnel officer John Crook recommended one of his colleagues for a pay rise and was asked by his line manager why he felt his colleague deserved it. He gave his reasons and jokingly added: "She was a grrrrrrrrreat shag as well!" He lost both his job and a subsequent claim for unfair dismissal.

5. Pundits panned

When BBC Five Live acquired the services of football commentators Andy Gray and Jonathon Pearce for the 2002 World Cup, executive editor of BBC Sports News Graeme Reid-Davies jokingly emailed a colleague saying: "I think they're both crap." He accidentally copied his message to 500 members of the BBC sports staff - including Gray and Pearce.