The BBC's governing body ruled yesterday that the broadcaster acted appropriately when it suspended its star disc jockey and accepted the resignation of a fellow performer for leaving lewd messages on an actor's phone about his granddaughter.

The trust that oversees Britain's national broadcaster criticized the BBC for airing a routine by TV personality, Jonathan Ross, and comedian Russell Brand. But it did not call for any further action against Ross, who was suspended without pay for three months.

Brand, a controversial comedian and host of the Radio 2 program that aired the calls, quit last month after he was suspended. The controller of the radio channel on which the routine was broadcast has also resigned.

Brand and Ross recorded telephone calls to actor Andrew Sachs, 78, in which the pair claimed Brand had sex with Sachs' granddaughter. In an ad-libbed routine, they joked that Sachs might hang himself as a result of the news.

The calls to Sachs -- best known for playing Spanish waiter Manuel in the 1970s program, Fawlty Towers -- drew thousands of complaints. Prime Minister Gordon Brown called the comments "inappropriate and unacceptable."

Sach's granddaughter, Georgina Baillie, a 23-year-old London burlesque entertainer, told The Sun newspaper that she was "disgusted" by the incident, but also confirmed she had had a relationship with Brand.

The BBC Trust's chairman, Sir Michael Lyons, said it was a "disappointing and dismal episode."

Lyons said the obscene material should not have been recorded, and that in any case it should have been cut before the show was broadcast.

Ross, who has a three-year contract reportedly worth $29 million US, is known for pushing boundaries. Brand has a growing U.S. profile due to appearances in films and on the MTV Video Music Awards in September, where he offended some viewers by describing President George W. Bush as "that retarded cowboy fellow."

Lyons called for more oversight of "high-risk" programs.

"Putting Russell Brand and Jonathan Ross in the same studio, you could have predicted quite straightforwardly was going to be a risky situation," Lyons said. "This isn't rocket science."