BBC PRESENTER JEREMY Clarkson has taken to Youtube to ‘beg for forgiveness’ over claims her used a racist rhyme during an episode of Top Gear.
The apology comes after Clarskon had earlier issued a denial on twitter that he’d used the n-word during a recording of the globally successful show.
The denials come after a story in today’s Daily Mirror claimed that Clarkson used a racist children’s rhyme while trying to decide between two cars.
The story said that Clarkson had recited, “Eeny meeny, miny, moe, catch a n***** by his toe,” with the offending word in a muffled voice.
In the video the Daily Mirror published on their website, the volume was turned up at the point where the offending word would be.
The BBC footage was not broadcast and another take was used.
Clarkson denied the claims but later in the day released the video statement denying it further:
“Now, of course, I was well aware that in the best known version of this rhyme, there is a racist expression that I was extremely keen to avoid.
The full rushes show that I did three takes. In two I mumbled where the offensive word would normally occur and in the third, I replaced it all together with the word ‘teacher’. When I viewed this footage, several weeks later, I realised that in one of the mumbled versions, if you listen very carefully with the sound turned right up, it did appear that I’d actually used the word I was trying to obscure.
Clarkson has been accused of racism in the past for comments he made on the show about India, Mexico, Malaysia and Wales, among others.
Clarkson also once referred to British prime minister Gordon Brown a “one-eyed Scottish idiot” and suggested that striking public sector workers should be shot.
