Police give update as Ian Hislop ‘shot at in taxi’ near Private Eye offices

Police have issued an update

The Guardian reported this morning that the Private Eye editor was in the back of a black cab in Soho when a suspected bullet struck the vehicle's back window.

However, the BBC have reported that no firearm was involved in the incident and suspect a mechanical fault with the car caused the back window to shatter.

The vehicle has been taken for further inspection.

The driver of the vehicle told detectives traffic had been at a stand still when the incident happened just after 10am on Tuesday on Dean Street, Soho, near Private Eye's offices.

Both the driver and Hislop escaped without injury, with the roads around the scene then closed by police.

A source told the Guardian that police were keeping an open mind as to any motive.

In a statement issued this morning, the Metropolitan Police said it was called "to a report of a firearms discharge".

"The driver of a London black taxi reported he was stationary in traffic when a shot was fired towards his vehicle, striking the window," the force added.

"There were no injuries. An investigation has been launched."

Hislop is best known as being the long-serving panellist on hit comedy panel show Have I Got News For You. The 64-year-old has been an ever-present on the show since it first aired on the BBC in 1990.

He has also been the editor of satirical and current affairs news magazine Private Eye since 1986.