The BBC have axed plans to air a celebrity pole dancing show as part of their sports relief week in July.

Stars such as Zoe Ball, Natasha Kaplinsky and Fiona Phillips had been linked to the show, but protests from many womens rights activists have caused the BBC to have second thoughts about the concept.

Denise Marshall of the Poppy Project, a Home Office-funded support group for women trafficked into prostitution, said: “Despite celebrity advocates promoting pole dancing as harmless fun, we must not forget that it has inextricable links to the sexual exploitation of women.�

A BBC spokesman said: “This idea was one of several that we were considering and will not now be developed further.�