A pregnant woman was dropped from a BBC television debate on abortion after being told that she might upset others taking part.

Former nurse Sarah Costerton was interviewed as a potential panellist for a new BBC2 programme called Abortion On Trial, hosted by presenter Anne Robinson.

Mrs Costerton said programme-makers had seemed keen for her to participate but after being told her pregnancy might distress other participants or restrict what they felt able to say, she was informed that she would not be required.

Former nurse Sarah Costerton, pictured here with three-year-old daughter Beth, was dropped from Abortion on Trial

The married mother of three said: ‘They were worried it would inhibit people speaking freely or cause upset; that me being pregnant would offend people who opted for a termination. That’s what was said.’

She said the programme-makers had given no explanation for not selecting her, but added: ‘It seemed that me that being pregnant was a stumbling block.’

She said that she did not see how a debate could fully represent all views on abortion if none of the participants was pregnant, and the programme makers had ‘missed an opportunity’ by not inviting her to take part.

Abortion On Trial, which is due to be broadcast on October 16, is billed as a debate among nine people with conflicting views about terminations to mark 50 years since the passing of the Abortion Act.

It was filmed over a weekend at Anne Robinson’s country home in Gloucestershire.

The anniversary has triggered a fierce national debate over the future of the law, with pro-choice campaigners intensifying their efforts to force decriminalisation of abortion, which many fear will result in abortion on demand.

Mrs Costerton, from south London, was at first considered for the programme because she refused to have the abortion suggested by doctors when she discovered her second daughter, Beth, now four, had Down’s syndrome.

She said she was disappointed by the programme-makers’ attitude to her third pregnancy because they appeared to give priority to the sensitivities of one set of women over the feelings of others.

She said: ‘I was angry because it feels like there is extra protection given to the feelings of women who have been through a termination.

‘The comments I have had about my daughter having Down’s syndrome are unbelievable and the Down’s community has to put up with feeling offended every day.’

Abortion on Trial, presented by Anne Robinson, dropped the pregnant mother-of-three, who says her pregnancy was a stumbling block

Mrs Costerton, 43, said: ‘Sympathy always goes to the woman who has had the termination and society expects everyone to feel this way. Anyone who does not fully endorse that faces being lambasted as Right-wing, anti-choice and anti-women.

‘If women who had terminations are willing to go on the television and testify to that and explain their reasoning, me sitting there pregnant shouldn’t make any difference or be offensive.’

Mrs Costerton went through with her pregnancy with Beth after blood tests showed her daughter had a one in two chance of being born with Down’s syndrome, a decision she said she and her husband David never regretted.

A spokesman for the BBC said: ‘Abortion On Trial marks the 50th anniversary of the Abortion Act and asks whether the legislation reflects the views of modern Britain.

‘As in the making of any programme, production spoke to a wide range of potential contributors and it’s simply not true that anyone was not included on the grounds that their story might offend. The contributors represent a breadth of views and perspectives and include the mother of a child with Down’s.’