Dania Mondini, 58, alleges that state broadcaster RAI made her endure “noisy, repeated and malodorous bodily emissions” as part of a campaign of intimidation against her.

She said managers responded to her complaints about the situation by giving her “banal” assignments and subjecting her to “verbal aggression”, The Telegraph reports.

Although Ms Mondini launched legal proceedings in 2018, the long-running case has now taken a twist with prosecutors in Rome launching a criminal investigation.