BBC anchor gives middle finger in private joke gone wrong

The Tehran-born journalist has been one of the BBC News channel’s chief anchors since she was promoted in February. (Screenshot)
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Updated 07 December 2023
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BBC anchor gives middle finger in private joke gone wrong

  • Maryam Moshiri issued an apology and explained she was having a private joke with the team in the gallery

LONDON: BBC anchor Maryam Moshiri was caught on camera giving the middle finger in what appeared to be a private joke gone wrong.

A video capturing the incident quickly went viral on the internet, showing Moshiri raising her eyebrows and making the gesture as she appeared on screen at the beginning of Wednesday’s midday news bulletin.

Realizing she was live on air, Moshiri swiftly retracted her hand, transitioning into reading the headlines with composure. “Live from London, this is BBC News,” she stated, reverting to a traditional news anchor stance.

The incident garnered widespread attention on social media, prompting Moshiri to address the matter and issue an apology.

In an explanatory post, she revealed that she was “having a private joke” with her friends in the gallery, involving a countdown with her fingers culminating in the potentially offensive gesture.

“Hey, I’m so sorry about this. I was having a private joke with the team in the gallery and pretending to count down as the director was counting me down from 10-0 … including the fingers to show the number,” the presenter said in a post on X.

“When we got to 1 I turned finger [sic] around as a joke and did not realise that this would be caught on camera.

“It was not my intention for this to happen and I’m sorry if I offended or upset anyone. I wasn’t ‘flipping the bird’ at viewers or even a person really,” she said.

The Tehran-born journalist has been one of the BBC News channel’s chief anchors since she was promoted in February. She has worked for the British broadcaster for more than 20 years.

The incident also comes as the UK government confirmed “woke warrior” veteran TV executive Samir Shah was their preferred candidate to take over as BBC chair.


Book by jailed Palestinian political leader Marwan Barghouti set for November release

Updated 03 February 2026
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Book by jailed Palestinian political leader Marwan Barghouti set for November release

  • Prison letters, photographs and other documents to feature in the book

DUBAI: A new book by jailed Palestinian political leader Marwan Barghouti is set for publication in November, with Penguin confirmed as the publisher, The Guardian reported.

Titled “Unbroken: In Pursuit of Freedom for Palestine,” the book brings together a selection of Barghouti’s writings, including prison letters, interviews, public statements, conversations with public figures, and other documents and photographs.

It also features excerpts from his book “1,000 Days in Solitary Confinement,” which has so far only been published in Arabic.

Fadwa Barghouti, who wrote the introduction to the book, said she hoped it would allow the world to hear her husband “in his own voice, not through the noise surrounding him.”

She said in a statement: “This book finally makes that possible — and I hope it helps people understand who Marwan Barghouti truly is, and how he embodies the Palestinian struggle for freedom and dignity.”

Barghouti, who has spent over two decades in Israeli prison, is a member of the Fatah party. He has long advocated a two-state solution and is widely regarded as a powerful and unifying voice for Palestinians, with many supporters describing him as “Palestine’s Mandela.”

His detention has prompted repeated international advocacy efforts over the years.

In December 2025, an open letter calling for his release was signed by hundreds of celebrities, including Margaret Atwood, Philip Pullman, Zadie Smith and Annie Ernaux; actors Sir Ian McKellen, Benedict Cumberbatch, Tilda Swinton, Josh O’Connor, Mark Ruffalo and Stephen Fry; and musicians Sting, Paul Simon, Brian Eno and Annie Lennox.

In November 2025, his family and several UK-based human rights advocates ran a campaign that included demonstrations and public art installations in Palestine and London.

Barghouti has been jailed by Israel since 2004, having been handed five life sentences plus 40 years for his role during the second Palestinian uprising. He has spent significant time in solitary confinement, has been denied visits by his family for three years, and has been denied access to the International Committee of the Red Cross.

His name was on a list of prisoners to be exchanged for Israeli captives in October 2025, but Israel declined to release him.