Jonathan Ross’s BBC career ‘in balance’

Jonathan Ross's career is said to be in the balance today as director-general Mark Thompson prepares to address an emergency meeting with the BBC Trust. Russell Brand quit his Radio 2 presenter's job yesterday, but it looks like Ross is intent on holding onto his £18m TV and radio contract. Today’s meeting follows Thompson's announcement yesterday that both men were suspended and all their shows - including Ross's television programmes - were being taken off air until the BBC has fully investigated the incident involving lewd messages left on Fawlty Towers actor Andrew Sachs's voicemail.

Thompson, whose statement followed a call from Gordon Brown that
"appropriate action" be taken, said: "This gross lapse of taste by the
performers and the production team has angered licence payers." He offered his "own personal and unreserved apology to Andrew Sachs, his family and to licence fee payers for the completely unacceptable broadcast".

The controversy, which has now attracted 30,000 complaints from licence holders and is to be investigated by the broadcasting watchdog Ofcom, began on October 18 when Ross was a guest on Brand's show and they attempted to telephone Sachs for an arranged interview, but were answered by his voicemail service. Brand told listeners: "What Andrew doesn't know is, I've slept with his granddaughter." As he left a message for the actor, Ross, 47, shouted: "He fucked your granddaughter."

Before yesterday's various announcements, Sachs himself had accepted a written apology from Ross, but his granddaughter, Georgina Baillie, 23, a member of the dance troupe Satanic Sluts Extreme, told the Sun newspaper that the BBC should sack Brand and Ross.

Because of the D-G's suspension of the two men, this week's Friday Night with Jonathan Ross television show, which was to have been filmed yesterday with guests Frank Skinner, Miley Cyrus and Sir David Attenborough, will not be broadcast. Ross's Saturday morning radio show, and Brand's Saturday night radio show, have been pulled from Radio 2's schedules.