With its provocative title and lyrics that openly attacked the UK establishment, on this day in 1977 the Sex Pistols' God Save The Queen sparked outrage with its release. Six months earlier, the BBC tried to get to the bottom of the chaotic youth movement that seemed to be challenging the very foundations of British society.

On 27 May 1977, during the patriotic run-up to the 25th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession to the throne – the punk group The Sex Pistols released an incendiary single that ignited a firestorm of controversy and brought them overnight notoriety.

Warning: This article contains language some readers may find offensive

The song, God Save the Queen, was a searing critique of the monarchy and the established political order it represented. Powered by stripped-back guitars, raw energy and furiously scathing lyrics, it proclaimed that the Queen "ain't no human being", people had "no future" and the UK was "a fascist regime".

The record, and the timing of its release just before the Silver Jubilee, seemed a very direct challenge to the traditional reverence afforded to the monarch at the time. Within days, the BBC had rushed to issue a total ban on its radio and TV airplay.

BBC Radio Two controller Charles McLelland branded the song as "gross bad taste", while Labour MP Marcus Lipton denounced it, saying "if pop music is going to be used to destroy our established institutions, then it ought to be destroyed first".

Many shops, like Woolworths, simply refused to stock the single.

The Sex Pistols had emerged as part of a punk movement that was rapidly spreading in the UK in the mid-1970s, as the country grappled with economic stagnation, rising unemployment, power blackouts and bubbling racial tensions.

With its DIY spirit and anti-authority stance, punk was a response to boredom, social conformity and alienation that many young people felt. The music that came out of it articulated the hypocrisy that they saw in both the British establishment and UK's mainstream culture.

Unapologetic, unruly and confrontational, The Sex Pistols, personified this punk ethos.

Six months before the single's release, in November 1976, one such establishment institution, the UK's national broadcaster, the BBC, had invited the band in to be interviewed on current affairs programme, Nationwide.

The broadcaster was keen to get to grips with a cultural movement reflecting the anger, frustration and disillusionment that seemed prevalent among the nation's youth and which was so clearly worrying its older viewers.

The band at the time was made up of singer Johnny Rotten (aka John Lydon), guitarist Steve Jones, drummer Paul Cook and bassist Glen Matlock, who would leave the following year to be replaced by Sid Vicious. They were introduced with a segment that aimed to bring the audience up to speed with what they described as "the cult of punk".

"Well, it may not be the best rock 'n' roll in the world, but it is certainly the most controversial," intoned a clearly disapproving voiceover from presenter........

© BBC