Catholic bishop criticises documentary about Virgin Mary

A BBC programme about the Virgin Mary has been criticised by a Catholic bishop as "crude and offensive" guesswork.

The Right Reverend Crispian Hollis, Bishop of Portsmouth, accused the Virgin Mary of inaccurate speculation which misrepresents a figure respected by millions.

The documentary says the traditional image of Mary as a blue-eyed, blonde-haired woman wearing expensive blue robes is probably wrong.

It portrays her as a poor and downtrodden girl, who might have conceived Jesus as a result of being raped.

The programme says she was probably a hard-working uneducated girl in simple tunics who had an arranged marriage with Joseph aged 13.