Ford condemns press watchdog a pussycat over Majorca snaps

The BBC newscaster Anna Ford branded the press complaints commission a «pussycat» regulator yesterday, after the high court in London rejected a complaint that her privacy was invaded by paparazzi. While Mr Justice Silber expressed sympathy with her situation, he said the PCC had acted lawfully in ruling that pictures showing her sunbathing in Majorca were not a breach of her privacy. Ford, presenter of the One O'Clock News on BBC1, was refused leave to appeal and said she was “disappointed” by the ruling. She condemned the commission as “a pussycat of a PCC” - but emphasised she did not want new privacy laws introduced which could inhibit investigative reporting. The photographs were taken without her knowledge using telephoto lenses, and showed her sunbathing on a beach with then partner, former US astronaut David Scott, and her teenage children.