ITV has apologised after an uncensored Gordon Ramsay rant was accidentally shown in subtitles during a morning repeat of Food Stars USA on ITV2.
The broadcaster was found to have breached broadcasting regulations after closed captions displayed the celebrity chef using the f-word during an episode aired at 8.25am on 2 May — more than 12 hours before the 9pm watershed.
While the programme’s audio had been edited and the swear words replaced with the standard censoring tone, viewers who had subtitles switched on saw the unedited captions appear on screen.
The f-word was displayed twice during the broadcast, according to Ofcom, which ruled that ITV had committed a clear breach of its broadcasting code.
Gordon Ramsay. Sterling Munksgard, Shutterstock
ITV explained that the subtitles had been created using an unedited version of the programme, meaning they had not been updated to match the censored audio version that was broadcast.
The broadcaster said the captions were created in June 2025, before new quality control procedures were introduced.
Following the incident, ITV2 said it had introduced additional checks to prevent similar mistakes happening again, including systems to highlight differences between programme versions before they are broadcast.
The channel also confirmed that all subtitled versions of Gordon Ramsay’s Food Stars USA had been reviewed following the error.
In its ruling, Ofcom said that because the episode was pre-recorded, ITV2 had sufficient opportunity to identify and fix the issue before transmission.
"In this case, the broadcast of the words at 08:25 was a clear example of the most offensive language being broadcast before the watershed," the regulator said.
Ofcom also criticised ITV2 for not issuing an on-air apology after the programme aired.
"Further, we considered there was no on-air apology made by ITV2 following the broadcast," the ruling added.
While the regulator acknowledged that ITV had taken steps to improve its checks, it said those measures did not remove the impact of the original broadcast.
Gordon Ramsay is married to TV broadcaster and author Tana Ramsay. Motorsport Photography F1, Shutterstock
The incident is not the first time Gordon Ramsay’s colourful language has caused problems for broadcasters.
Earlier this year, This Morning presenter Ben Shephard was forced to apologise live on air after Ramsay accidentally swore during a cooking segment alongside his daughter Tilly Ramsay.
The chef had been discussing his daughter Holly Ramsay’s wedding to Olympic swimmer Adam Peaty when he knocked over a container of soy sauce and appeared to swear during the live broadcast.
Shephard quickly stepped in, telling viewers:
"Just in case that spilled into the classic Ramsay work, apologies. We are live. I'm just pre-empting a strike."
Ramsay denied using the swear word, joking: "I said shoot! Ben - come on, Ben!"
Ofcom research has previously found that viewers have particular concerns about the use of the f-word on television, especially when broadcast before the watershed.
