Richard & Judy fined over Red Bull

Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan have landed Channel 4 with a £5,000 fine for plugging Red Bull on air.

The couple were found to have breached rules prohibiting product placement after an item on their afternoon chat show repeatedly referred to the energy drink.

It also featured sportsmen and academics who were sponsored by Red Bull.

This triggered a flood of complaints from viewers, one of whom said the item 'seemed like an advertisement for Red Bull with celebrity endorsements'.

A second viewer compared it to 'a sponsored advert for the coffee and Red Bull industry', while a third was 'left wondering whether the item had been produced by the makers of Red Bull'.

Yesterday, Richard and Judy appeared unperturbed by the criticism as they holidayed in the south of France.

The couple, who have been staying in a villa for the last ten days, made a rare excursion to go shopping for groceries.

Miss Finnigan, 57, wore a simple pink dress and flip flops while her 49-year-old husband lived up to his youthful image in jeans, T-shirt and dark glasses.

The fine by media watchdog Ofcom was triggered by an item broadcast on July 19, which was intended to correct inaccuracies in an earlier feature about the dangers of excessive caffeine intake.

Madeley apologised for ' unintentionally' misleading viewers by exaggerating the amount of caffeine in Red Bull.

The programme - called Richard and Judy - went on to show a clip of the golfer Paul Casey drinking Red Bull and saying that it 'really assists me in keeping sharp and alert'.

Also featured in the clip were former Formula One driver Johnny Herbert, who once drove for the Red Bull Sauber Ford team, and 'expert' Dr Louise Reyner.