Express & Star readers in favour of Radio One playing of Thatcher "Ding Dong" song
Express & Star readers have overwhelmingly voted in favour of the BBC playing Ding, Dong The Witch is Dead – as the broadcaster announced it will only play a short clip during Sunday's Radio One chart show.
The Wizard of Oz song has shot into the top five of the charts following the death of Margaret Thatcher.
An online campaign encouraged opponents of the late prime minister to buy it, but the sudden rise in popularity of the record sparked complaints from critics who said it should not be played on national radio.
Yesterday 1,791 voted in our online poll on expressandstar.com on whether the song should be played. A total of 1,334, or 74 per cent, said yes and 26 per cent, 457, said no.
Video journalist Nicky Butler took to the streets of Wednesfield to ask shoppers whether they thought the song should be played on the radio. Scroll down to see the results
Radio One bosses discussed whether it was appropriate to play the song on tomorrow's 7pm chart show, hosted by Jameela Jamil, and decided they only broadcast a short segment. A spokesman for the BBC said: "The BBC finds this campaign distasteful but does not believe the record should be banned. On Sunday, the Radio One Chart Show will contain a news item explaining why the song is in the charts, during which a short clip will be played."
Radio One controller Ben Cooper said there were "very difficult and emotional arguments on both sides of the fence".
He said: "Let's not forget you also have a family that is grieving for a loved one who is yet to be buried. Nobody at Radio One wishes to cause offence but nor do I believe that we can ignore the song in the chart show. That in turn means that all songs in the chart become an historic fact.
"I've therefore decided exceptionally that we should treat the rise of the song, based as it is on a political campaign to denigrate Lady Thatcher's memory, as a news story. So we will play a brief excerpt of it in a short news report which explains to our audience why a 70-year-old song is at the top of the charts.
"To ban the record from our airwaves completely would risk giving the campaign the oxygen of further publicity and might inflame an already delicate situation."
