Naga Munchetty and Jon Kay's forgotten BBC Breakfast row after jibe left him 'stung'

Naga Munchetty and Jon Kay had a lively exchange of insults during one episode of BBC Breakfastthat screened during lockdown - and he didn't hesitate to compare his co-star to a hornet.

They'd been discussing how genetic testing of fruit flies could provide valuable clues about how loneliness and isolation - which was rife during the pandemic - could cause destructive habits such as overeating, as well as disorders like insomnia. However, Naga hadn't been expecting Jon to get quite so personal.

Naga had explained: "Scientists have got a load of fruit flies and taken a look at their sleep and feeding behaviour and found that they're social creatures. What [they] have been trying to find out is the link between loneliness and insomnia in humans."

She continued: "Fruit flies mimic the behaviour of us when we’ve lived in pandemic conditions, you know, isolation." The poor flies had been placed under "lockdown conditions", causing each fly to "eat more and sleep less".

The study then "identified all the genes that are connected to this which would help lots of people in terms of loneliness, sleep deprivation and eating patterns". That was particularly useful in countries such as the USA where there’d been "a problem with significant weight gain".

Jon then interrupted her explanation to ask Naga what insect she identifies with the most.

“What are you? You’re like a hornet, buzzing around, stinging," he exclaimed.

Jon mischievously added: “You know it’s true,” leaving her smirking.

Meanwhile, for his part, Jon said it was a "stick insect" that he'd most like to emulate.

Naga remarked: “We’ve all got ambitions haven’t we?”

The caustic swipe, from 2021, is just one of many shared between the pair over the years - and they never fail to have BBC Breakfast devotees in hysterics in the mornings.

There have been times when Naga has been forced to take time out to control her hysterical laughter, so there's never a dull moment in the studio.

BBC Breakfast airs everyday at 6am on BBC One.