Professor Brian Cox says BBC bosses banned him from listening to a distant planet on live TV - in case aliens breached editorial guidelines.
His BBC2 show, Stargazing Live, featured a planet called Threapleton Holmes B, recently discovered by two amateur astronomers.
But Prof Cox said the idea of listening to the new planet live on air was blocked by BBC health and safety regulations.
http://web.orange.co.uk/article/quirkies/BBC_health_and_safety_bosses_ban_aliens