The Wrong Mans, BBC2, 23 December 2014: Finding by the Editorial Complaints Unit

Complaint
A viewer who had otherwise enjoyed this post-watershed comedy thriller complained about a sequence in which a character expressed astonishment by coupling “Jesus Christ” with one of the strongest swear-words.

Outcome
Research makes clear that viewers and listeners find the combination of the strongest swear-words with holy names significantly more offensive than either when used separately. The phrase in question calls for stronger editorial justification than was apparent in this case.
Upheld

Further action
The finding has been shared with BBC Television’s Compliance Managers and senior management. They have been reminded that any proposal to use the phrase in question would require very strong editorial justification.

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