Ofcom have revealed that they will investigate a particularly controversial episode of ‘Big Brother’, which aired earlier this month.
In the space of one hour, viewers saw Laura Carter and Marco Pierre White Jr disappear into the pod together, where he invited her to “choke” him with his belt.
The two were later seen in the garden, where he was shown kissing her bare breasts, before they disappeared under the covers in the communal ‘BB’ bedroom, while the rest of the housemates attempted to get some sleep.
After more than 600 complaints were made to Ofcom about the “choking” scene - which was preceded by a warning that “abusive and HIGHLY offensive language”, “explosive aggressive confrontations” and “extremely risky sexual activity” were all ahead - the media regulator is now planning to launch an investigation.
They said in a statement: “We're investigating whether sexual scenes in this episode of Big Brother exceeded generally accepted standards for its time of broadcast.”
Marco has since been evicted from the ‘BB’ house, marking the first time in 16 years of the show that a man has been the first housemate to be voted out by the public.
It’s been another controversial year for ‘BB’, with one housemate, Andrew Tate, already having to be removed from the house when a video of him appearing to hit an ex-girlfriend with a belt was posted on The Sun’s website.
He has since insisted the video was consensual.
Some viewers have also called for the removal of Ryan Ruckledge, over a transphobic tweet he sent to ‘BB’ winner Luke Anderson. The tweet has now been recirculated online.
