Ofcom has revealed the most complained-about TV moments in its 20-year history.
Every fortnight, the media watchdog posts a “broadcast bulletin” on its website detailing all of the latest updates when it comes to its standards and guidelines.
To coincide with its 500th bulletin this week, Ofcom has revealed the incidents that sparked the most complaints since the regulator began operating in 2004.
Scooping the bronze medals for most complaints was the 2018 series of Celebrity Big Brother on Channel 5, which saw Roxanne Pallett accuse Ryan Thomas of deliberately punching her in the ribs, despite on-camera evidence proving this not to be the case.
The Roxanne Pallett saga sparked 25,327 complaints, with the second-place entry on Ofcom’s list also coming from Celebrity Big Brother, albeit more than a decade earlier.
In 2007, the reality show sparked 45,159 complaints due to Jade Goody and other housemates’ treatment of Bollywood star Shilpa Shetty, for which Channel 4 was found to have been in breach of broadcasting guidelines.
At the top of the list, though, was Piers Morgan’s infamous remarks about Meghan Markle on Good Morning Britain in 2021, which set a new Ofcom record for complaints.
The morning after the Duchess of Sussex’s interview with Oprah Winfrey aired in the US, Piers cast doubt on several claims she’d made, including that she’d experienced suicidal thoughts while still a senior member of the Royal Family.
Piers was rebuked at the time by co-presenter Susanna Reid, which eventually led Ofcom to decide that there had been enough pushback that they would not launch an investigation, despite 54,595 complaints in total.
It later emerged that Meghan herself had also made a formal complaint to ITV due to Piers’ remarks.
A day after the initial GMB broadcast, Piers stormed off the set of the show when he was confronted by former colleague Alex Beresford, and announced his departure from the daytime show that evening.
Check out the full list of Ofcom’s most complained-about incidents below:
1. Good Morning Britain, 2021 – 54,495 complaints
Piers Morgan casts doubt on Meghan Markle’s claims she experienced suicidal thoughts while still a senior royal
2. Celebrity Big Brother, 2007 – 45,159 complaints
Jade Goody and fellow housemates’ treatment of Shilpa Shetty sparks racism accusations
3. Celebrity Big Brother, 2018 – 25,327 complaints
Roxanne Pallett wrongly accuses Ryan Thomas of deliberately punching her in the ribs
4. Britain’s Got Talent , 2020– 25,017 complaints
Diversity’s guest performance reflecting on the events of 2020 includes references to Black Lives Matter protests
5. Love Island, 2021 – 24,921 complaints
Former Islander Faye Winter shouts at boyfriend Teddy Soares in the villa.
6. Julia Hartley-Brewer (TalkTV), 2024 – 17,351
Julia Hartley-Brewer suggests Mustafa Barghouti, a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council, is perhaps “not used to women talking”.
7. I’m A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here!, 2020 – 11,516
I’m A Celebrity continues to use live animals in its Bushtucker Trials.
8. Dan Wootton Tonight (GB News), 2023 – 8,867
Guest Laurence Fox launches into a misogynistic tirade about a female journalist live on air.
9. Jerry Springer The Opera, 2005 – 8,860
Viewers take issue with the musical’s use of language and depiction of Christian imagery.
10. King Charles III: The Coronation (ITV), 2023 – 8,421
Bridgerton star Adjoa Andoh remarks on the disparity between what she described as the “rich diversity of the Abbey” the “terribly white” scene after the Royal Family waved to the public from the balcony of Buckingham Palace.
Check out more about the 10 moments on Ofcom’s website.