ITV News apologises for using footage of Ainsley Harriott during Lenny Henry knighthood interview
ITV News has been left red faced after its coverage of Lenny Henry’s knighthood bizarrely used footage of Ainsley Harriott.
During an interview with Henry after he received his knighthood from the queen for services to charity and comedy, ITV News cut to an archived clip showing Ainsley Harriott dancing on stage.
The blunder was quickly picked up by a number of viewers including Goodness Gracious Me star, Sanjeev Bhaskar, who suggested the broadcaster “may have misunderstood diversity issues.”
ITV news used a clip of Ainsley Harriott when interviewing Lenny Henry about his knighthood. They may have misunderstood diversity issues.
— Sanjeev Bhaskar (@TVSanjeev) December 4, 2015
An ITV spokesperson said it “apologises for the error broadcast” which it attributed to the “result of an error in the production process”.
The clip has since been removed from the report on its +1 channel and has been replaced with a message saying it was “not legally” allowed to show the content.
Henry dedicated the honour to anyone who had taken part in Comic Relief and ironically used the broadcast to vow that he would continue to campaign for improved diversity in the media.