The row erupted just after 10pm when Burley tweeted twice within a few minutes as the Olympic athletes started to enter the stadium after Boyle's staging.

In his first tweet Burley wrote: "The most leftie opening ceremony I have ever seen – more than Beijing, the capital of a communist state! Welfare tribute next?"

A minute later Burley tweeted: "Thank God the athletes have arrived! Now we can move on from leftie multi-cultural crap. Bring back red arrows, Shakespeare and the Stones!"