Little Britain's David Walliams has been criticised for branding a town "a s***hole".

The television favourite made the remark after Motherwell, North Lanarkshire was mentioned during the show's sell-out stage tour, in a Glasgow performance last week. Some sections of the audience applauded the comment.

Bishop of Motherwell, Joe Devine, complained, "This is an insulting and offensive remark. The quality of Motherwell is about the character and calibre of the people who live there. The residents of Motherwell are among the friendliest, most humorous and generous people to be found in the country."

A spokeswoman for the tour explained, "They do pick on local towns nearby everywhere they perform. On this occasion, they were responding to an audience reaction."