The Magic Numbers have stormed off stage at a Top of the Pops rehearsal because they thought presenter Richard Bacon had said something derogatory about their weight. What Bacon said when introducing the band was: "What do you get when you put two brothers and sisters in a band? A big fat melting pot of talent". Bacon and the Beeb swear blind that the use of 'fat' was used to describe the size of the band's current success, and not the size of their bodies, but the band weren't convinced.
A spokesman for the BBC told reporters last night: "It was a figure of speech referring to the band's status. It was absolutely in no way referring to the appearance of any of the band members".
But the band told reporters: "Due to derogatory, unfunny remarks made during the guest presenter's introduction to our performance, we felt we had to make a stand and leave. It was an important day for us and should have been special. We didn't take this decision lightly but stand by it."