Jeremy Hunt thanks James Naughtie for conducting his 'most memorable interview ever'

Accidentally pronouncing a 'H' as a 'C' led to a spoonerism the Health Secretary will never forget

Jeremy Hunt: The Health Secretary condemned the ‘silent scandal’ of mistakes (PA)

Jeremy Hunt has thanked James Naughtie for conducting his most memorable interview on the Today programme.

Naughtie bowed out of BBC Radio 4's flagship show with an emotional farewell message on Tuesday morning, bringing his 21-year stint as a presenter to a close.

His time as a presenter will be remembered for his incisive interviews and analysis of current affairs - and for a gaffe that left him in hysterics during a live interview in 2011.

Naughtie turned the airwaves blue when he unintentionally introduced the former culture secretary as 'Jeremy C**t' and then spent the next few minutes trying to contain his laughter.

“First up, after the news, we're going to be talking to Jeremy Hunt, the Culture Secretary,” he was supposed to say. Instead, the H fell out of his mouth as a C and formed the infamous ‘spoonerism’ that left Naughtie incapacitated for the next 20 minutes.

The incident is still fresh in the mind of the Health Secretary, who reflected back on their exchange in his tribute to Naughtie.

Naughtie couldn't resist referencing the slip-up ahead of his goodbye. When asked what he hadn’t enjoyed about his time on the show, he joked: “Well, getting things wrong. I can’t remember who the Culture Secretary is at the moment, but anyway, we won’t go there.”

A serial offender, he was also heard apparently muttering ‘sh*t’ before the famous pips aired on an episode of the Today programme in November.

He will continue to work for Today and the BBC as a special correspondent.