What BBC ban means to Jonathan Ross

So what exactly does the BBC's three-month suspension of Jonathan Ross (pictured) amount to? The Beeb has stipulated that he is still under contract and therefore unable to work for anybody else in the 12-week period. His only confirmed public appearance outside his BBC commitments was to have been presenting the British Comedy Awards, which ITV is screening on December 6. Today he confirmed he has pulled out of even that.

The Daily Mail, which was a prime mover in the campaign to punish Ross for his and Russell Brand's lewd phone calls to Fawlty Towers actor Andrew Sachs, claims that it is highly unlikely he will be asked to host this year's Bafta Film Awards in February (he has done so for the last two years), despite the fact it falls outside his suspension period. The paper reports that members of the various committees that run the awards have expressed strong feelings against his participation, for which he is paid £60,000.

As to his television shows, it is not known whether a stand-in will be found for Friday Night with Jonathan Ross and Film 2008. This week these will be replaced by two movies, Speed, starring Keanu Reeves, and Wild, a nature documentary. The absence of his chat show will definitely be a blow to any celebrity wishing to promote a book or film. His three-hour weekly Radio 2 show will be taken over by Richard Allinson, a man described as "BBC radio's safest pair of hands".

The unpaid time off - which is estimated to be costing him £1.4m in lost salary - will, however, allow him time to promote his autobiography. Presciently titled Why Do I Say These Things?, it comes out in November and is aimed at firmly at the undemanding Christmas market. That’s after he’s completed his one last hosting assignment for a while – tonight’s fancy dress Hallowe'en party at the Hampstead Garden Suburb home he shares with his wife, Jane, and their three children.