Bruce: ‘Black guy’ mistake on Question Time haunted me

FIONA BRUCE has said that she was “really unhappy” with herself after referring to a audience member as “the black guy”.

The BBC broadcast an episode of its topical debate show from Wolverhampton in October in which Bruce, who had identified other white audience members by the clothes they were wearing, directed the microphone to Roberto Gocan, 35, by calling him “the black guy in the middle” on air.

Her remarks were broadcast on BBC One, but they were edited out when the show later moved to the on-demand iPlayer service.

The 59-year-old veteran journalist, newsreader and television presenter, released a statement through the BBC apologising and called Mr Gocan personally to offer her apology.

She has spoken out about the incident again, saying that her mistakes sit with her “for a long time”.

In an interview with

she said: “Social media can be relentlessly critical, particularly if you’re a woman in a political arena.

“You just have to think: ‘Am I doing this job to the best of my ability?’ and if you are, that’s the best you can do. It’s really important to set your own standard and not let it be set by others. If I manage to achieve that – and I’m not saying I achieve that every week – then I absolutely can switch off.

“If I think I’ve made a mistake, it sits with me for a long time. When [I referred to an audience member on

as ‘the black guy’], I was really unhappy about it.

“It was definitely not the best way to describe him. Some people were critical; some said: ‘That’s ridiculous.’

“On it’s an extraordinary lightning rod for criticism of the BBC. Some are on a hair trigger looking for bias or the wrong thing [said]. It’s not the first and it won’t be the last time I don’t get it right, but it’s not an insignificant challenge on live television to have the right response every time.”

Mr Grocan told “She called me personally and I do rate her for that. She has given her public explanation which was clearly worded from the statement they put out.

“Micro-aggressions should be highlighted across the board. But I’m not looking to have a witch-hunt against Fiona Bruce.” The BBC was contacted for comment.