The British television station behind Celebrity Big Brother has apologized for airing footage of racist insults being hurled at Bollywood star Shilpa Shetty.

The incidents earlier this year, including one in which celebrity contestant Jade Goody called Shetty "Shilpa Pappadum," a reference to an Indian style of bread, drew international protests.

Protesters hold portraits of Bollywood star Shilpa Shetty and shout slogans against British reality show Celebrity Big Brother in Bhopal, India, in January.
(Prakash Hatvalne/Associated Press)

British regulator Ofcom said Channel 4 should have stepped in to halt the offensive behaviour.

Ofcom said the station breached its code of conduct and showed "serious editorial misjudgment" by allowing the taunts to go to air.

Footage of racist limericks aimed at Shetty did not go to air, but the show did include an incident in which contestants Jo O'Meara and Danielle Lloyd made fun of Shetty's cooking.

"They should have been more proactive in handling potential offensive material," an Ofcom spokeswoman said. "This was racist bullying."

Channel 4 apologized Thursday for the racially charged incidents, agreeing it should have acted sooner.

"We would like to say sorry once again for the offence caused to viewers as a result," the station said in a prepared statement.

Celebrity Big Brother is a reality show in which contestants live together in a house while recorded by video cameras. Viewers have the opportunity to vote for contestants.

The incidents involving Shetty provoked outrage among viewers and led to public protests in India.

Shetty ended up winning the contest while Goody was voted off the show.

Further taunting never went to air

Channel 4 revealed for the first time Thursday that there had been further racial incidents that did not make it to air, including an incident in which Goody and her boyfriend, Jack Tweed, chanted a limerick at Shetty.

Ofcom has ordered Channel 4 to air a summary of the ruling before the newest version of the Big Brother program airs next week.

Channel 4 said the summaries would be about a minute long and consist of text and a voiceover.
  
Shetty has said the incident is in the past and she thinks Goody and others learned their lesson.

Contestant not told of father's death

The Big Brother reality TV franchise, created by Netherlands-based Endemol, has been dogged with controversy around the world.

On Thursday, producers of Australia's version of Big Brother revealed that they have not told a contestant that her father died last week.

They said they were following her family's wishes by keeping the sad news from Emma Cornell, 24, who is isolated in the Big Brother house in Queensland.

Australia's version of the reality TV show drew criticism from Prime Minister John Howard last year after allegations of sexual assault on the show.