BBC forced to issue apology as EastEnders legend uses racial slur live on air
BBC Radio 4 was forced to apologise after former EastEnders actor John Altman used a racial slur during a live interview about the soap’s 40th anniversary.
The incident occurred on Wednesday when the 72-year-old actor, known for playing Nick Cotton, was discussing script changes from his return to the show in 2010.
Host Sarah Montague had to intervene during the World At One programme after Altman used the offensive term while explaining how language in the soap had evolved.
During the interview with Montague and scriptwriter Ann Marie di Mambro, Altman reflected on his early days in the soap alongside June Brown, who played Dot Cotton.
“During the early days with June, it was really flexible. You didn’t have to ask permission to have a cigarette. You could just do it. June and I used to improvise,” he said.
The actor explained they would make minor script adjustments, saying: “We knew our characters so well. We wouldn’t change it drastically. We’d put in words or a line here and there to make it comical.”
The conversation turned to Altman’s 2010 return to EastEnders, where he recounted how a racially offensive term in the script was changed to “illegal immigrant” – before revealing the original word was “p**i”.
After Altman used the slur on air, Montague immediately interjected apologising for the comment, and stated that it could not be a term used anymore.
When Altman suggested people still use such language today, Montague firmly responded: “They don’t.”
Montague then emphasised the importance of removing offensive language from scripts, noting words’ power in “influencing behaviour”.
Later in the programme, Montague issued a formal apology for the language used during the discussion.
“Can I apologise? It wasn’t appropriate in the old days, and it wasn’t appropriate now, for what John Altman said,” she stated.
The BBC has since removed the slur from its website.
Altman had earlier acknowledged how language in the show has changed, noting he was shocked when watching old clips from 40 years ago that would not be broadcast today.
Altman portrayed the infamous Nick Cotton from EastEnders’ first episode in 1985 until his character’s death in 2015 during the 30th-anniversary episodes.
His character became the soap’s biggest villain, featuring in several dark storylines including murders and plots against his mother Dot.
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Nick Cotton’s final scene saw him die in his mother’s arms after a fatal heroin reaction, for which Dot did not seek medical help.
Prior to his final departure, Altman had left and returned to the show multiple times between 1991 and 2014.