ITV apologises for airing uncensored Gordon Ramsay swearing before watershed

ITV issued an apology after Ofcom ruled that an 8:25 am repeat of the cooking competition “Food Stars USA” broadcast uncensored profanity spoken by Gordon Ramsay. The audio had been bleeped, but the subtitles displayed the words “f***” and “f***ing”, breaching UK watershed rules that forbid the most offensive language before 9 pm. Ofcom described the incident as a “clear breach” and noted the lack of an on‑air apology. ITV said the mistake resulted from human error during subtitle generation and that new checking processes have been introduced. All subtitles for the series are being re‑checked and staff guidance on subtitle verification has been reinforced.