Lewd calls made by comedians Jonathan Ross and Russell Brand were a "deplorable intrusion with no editorial justification", the BBC Trust said yesterday.

However, disciplinary action was found to have been proportionate.

An investigation by the Trust revealed that former BBC Radio 2 boss Lesley Douglas had authorised the show's broadcast with a one-word message, saying "Yes".

It was sent in response to an email from David Barber, head of specialist music and compliance, which said he thought the controversial show was "very funny". Both employees have since resigned.

Andrew Sachs, the Fawlty Towers star who received the calls last month, was said to be satisfied with the Trust's findings, and keen to move on.

His wife Melody told reporters: "My husband is the most wonderful person you could ever meet. They just picked on the wrong man."

She said the family was "tired" of the affair, which arose after the comedians left a message on the 78-year-old's voicemail claiming Brand had slept with the Fawlty Towers actor's granddaughter.

"Andrew has got nothing to say. Whatever they do, they do, but we are so tired of it all.

"We are the happiest people in the world," she said, adding that the couple had "no bitterness" towards the BBC presenters.

Brand resigned in the wake of the incident last month, and Ross has been suspended for 12 weeks.

Speaking after the conclusion of the investigation, which branded the calls "grossly offensive", BBC Trust chairman Sir Michael Lyons said the fault went beyond the comedians who made the calls.

He said: "The primary failing is one of editorial judgment. It's not only to the original Russell Brand programme, but to other programmes we've spoken about.

"And that's an issue for the BBC, as the publisher of this material. The programme shouldn't have been recorded, and most of all it shouldn't have been broadcast."

Politicians condemned the Trust's findings, and called for Ross to lose his job.

Shadow culture secretary Jeremy Hunt said the decision ignored the "fundamental issue" of putting quality programming ahead of ratings.

"The BBC Trust has sadly missed the point," he said.

"This is not simply about an editorial guideline that wasn't followed, but the BBC failing to recognise that the stars it employs should not behave in a way that legitimises behaviour that is offensive to the vast majority of licence fee-payers.

"A gentle slap on the wrist for the management won't address the fundamental issue: the BBC should be chasing quality and not ratings."

LibDem Phil Willis, who called for Ross to be sacked, said taxpayers deserved better standards.

He said: "When we are forking out millions of pounds of taxpayers' money on presenters, the least we can expect is a level of propriety commensurate with what the public considers decent.

"That didn't happen in this case and I think Mr Ross should have been sacked."

Labour MP Alan Simpson criticised Sir Michael for not applying real-world principles to the BBC.

He said: "In any other organisation the chief executive and the chairman would have sacked the person on the spot."