BBC host claims she was deceived by Sacha Baron Cohen during notorious radio controversy.

Sara Cox, a well-known BBC radio presenter, recently shared a memory from her time hosting the Radio 1 Breakfast show. She revealed that she had been "stitched up" by Sacha Baron Cohen during an interview in 2002. Sara hosted the morning show from 2000 to 2003 and was faced with a difficult situation when her guest, Sacha Baron Cohen, known for his controversial characters such as Ali G, caused a stir with his language.

During the interview, Sacha appeared in character as Ali G to promote his single "Me Julie" with singer Shaggy. However, things took a turn when he used expletives and joked about smuggling drugs. Sara, who was only 27 at the time, apologized to her listeners for the language and expressed her regret for not being able to control her guest.

Although the BBC only received a small number of complaints, Sara faced intense criticism and has now opened up about the experience on the podcast "How to Fail with Elizabeth Day." She explained that she was young and unprepared at the time and made a mistake by trusting her guest too much. The interview, which was live, should have been pre-recorded if it involved a controversial character like Ali G.

Sara recalled the moment when Sacha, in character, spelled out swear words and then "accidentally" said "f***er" on air. She said that her producers looked shocked and she was left flustered and unsure of how to handle the situation. The next day, the headlines blamed her for the incident, while Sacha faced no consequences.

Reflecting on the interview, Sara said that Sacha had "stitched her up" for publicity and it had a negative impact on her. She also mentioned that hearing the interview played back on the radio last year still brought back difficult memories. A year later, Sara was moved from the breakfast slot to the afternoon "drivetime" slot.

Since then, Sara has hosted various shows on BBC and currently presents the BBC Radio 2 drivetime show. She has also presented TV shows for the BBC such as "The Great Pottery Throw Down" and "Too Much TV." The Agency has reached out to Sacha Baron Cohen's representatives for a comment.

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