[Red Moon]

BBC censors The Pogues' Christmas classic

The BBC has censored a popular Christmas song amid fears the lyrics will upset homosexuals.

Fairytale of New York, by The Pogues featuring Kirsty MacColl, has been re-released for the festive period and is a contender for the coveted Christmas number one slot.

It tells the story of two lovers who trade insults on Christmas Eve and one verse ends with the memorable line: "You scumbag, you maggot you cheap lousy ******, Happy Christmas your arse I pray God It's our last."

Radio 1 bosses have bleeped out the word ****** from the song, for fear it will offend homosexuals, but have provoked the ire of one of their own leading DJs as well as listeners.

A spokesman said: "This step has been taken as this is a word that members of our audience would find offensive."

The decision was criticised as "ridiculous" by Chris Moyles, the Radio 1 DJ, who is leading a campaign to make the 1987 song the Christmas number one.

Fans of The Pogues also condemned the move.

David Higgins, from Liverpool, said: "Fairytale of New York is a great Christmas tune and this line sums up the theme of the song.

"The two singers are meant to be bickering at each other, so what is the point in censoring anything offensive - it defies the object of the track."

Experts believe the song could steal the top spot in the charts from Leon Jackson, the 18-year former shop assistant who won the X Factor competition on Saturday.

Its popularity has been helped by a series of campaigns on the social networking website Facebook, which are calling on people to download the song to make sure "we get a proper Christmas song to number one for Christmas instead of the stupid X- Factor winner".

The BBC added: "This is not a blanket ban but a station by station decision."

Source: Daily Telegraph