Tsonga 'hurt by Thatcher comment'

Tennis player Jo-Wilfried Tsonga has reportedly claimed that he was hurt by Carol Thatcher's comments referring to him as a "golliwog".

According to The Mirror, the star called his mother when the incident made the news and told her that he was "deeply hurt and upset".

Tsonga said: "I tried to escape the fuss but I'm astonished about the attack. Why me?"

His mother Evelyne commented: "Nobody deserves to be called a golliwog, least of all my son.

"Carol Thatcher should be deeply ashamed. The only consolation is the BBC acted swiftly to fire her.

"She's a high-profile figure and if she uses nasty terms like golliwog it sends out a message for everyone to do it."

She added that Thatcher's remark was unsurprising considering her background and that it brought shame on Britain.

The BBC yesterday defended its decision to axe Thatcher from The One Show and rejected calls from her agent to apologise for leaking details of the incident.