Radio 1 In 'Fairytale Of New York' U-Turn

Radio 1 has backed down over its decision to censor The Pogues and Kirsty McColl’s Christmas classic ‘Fairytale of New York.’

The BBC station announced yesterday that they were going to cut out the words “slut” and “faggot” from the festive favourite, but faced a barrage of criticism from listeners, The Pogues themselves and the late Kirsty MacColl’s mother.

Despite being a station for younger and seemingly more open minded listeners it banned the song, despite sister station Radio 2 saying that it would play the uncensored version of the track.

Now, Radio 1 controller Andy Parfitt says that their decision is wrong and that they are reversing the controversial decision. 

He said:  "Radio 1 does not play homophobic lyrics or condone bullying of any kind. It is not always easy to get this right, mindful of our responsibility to our young audience. The unedited version will be played from now on. 

"While we would never condone prejudice of any kind, we know our audiences are smart enough to distinguish between maliciousness and creative freedom. In the context of this song, I do not feel that there is any negative intent behind the use of the words, hence the reversal of the decision."