Despite being a bonafide Christmas classic, the BBC Radio 1 nearly censored The Pogues classic song, "Fairy Tale of New York" to remove the word "faggot" from broadcast. The word, sung by the late Kirsty MacColl as she trades insults with Shane MacGowan, was briefly dubbed out on the station. MacColl's mother, Jean, called the ban "too ridiculous", while the Pogues said they found it "amusing".

At the last minute however, the station responded to listeners, the band, Mrs. MacColl and reversed the decision. Controller Andy Parfitt said the original decision was "wrong". The station explained:

While we would never condone prejudice of any kind, we know our audiences are smart enough to distinguish between maliciousness and creative freedom. In the context of this song, I do not feel that there is any negative intent behind the use of the words, hence the reversal of the decision."