The producer of Have I Got News For You has criticised the BBC after the broadcaster removed a joke by Katherine Ryan that compared Victoria Beckham to an extremely offensive swear word. Jimmy Mulville, co-founder of Hat Trick Productions, described the BBC's investigation into the remark as an unnecessary use of licence-fee money.
In an episode hosted by Ryan that was broadcast on 7 November 2025, the programme discussed an alleged email from David Beckham in which he used the c-word while referring to the honours committee after previously being passed over for a knighthood. Ryan later made a joke linking the same word to Victoria Beckham.
