X-rated outburst on X Factor unacceptable says Ofcom

The teenage contestant, who was later axed because of his behaviour, sparked more than 100 complaints when he embraced his mentor Gary Barlow and responded: “F***ing have it. Get in there” when he was told that he had got through to the next round.

ITV did not apologise for the slip for 44 minutes, and then on a different channel – The Xtra Factor on ITV2 – because no-one in the studio or production gallery heard the outburst.

Ofcom said the word, which was broadcast on the Sunday evening live results show, was “clearly audible to viewers who were watching the programme 20 minutes before the 9pm watershed.

“This was particularly unacceptable in the context of a programme that attracts a substantial family audience,” it said.

Programme-makers admitted that they only became aware of the swearing “through monitoring online social media activity” towards the end of the broadcast. Channel TV, which compiles the show for ITV, blamed its “delayed response” – apologising on The Xtra Factor – on the fact that it “had to investigate whether or not” the contestant had sworn and whether the language was broadcast.

It said it had briefed judges, contestants and guests about offensive language and it “deeply regretted” Cocozza’s “unexpected and unprompted outburst”.

Nobody in the production gallery heard the swearing, and that “due to the noise of the audience... it is extremely unlikely that anyone in the studio would have either,” it said.

As a result of the error, it now has one member of its team watching the ITV1 feed of the show in a quiet environment.