Broadcasting regulator Ofcom is officially launching investigations into controversial episodes of ‘Loose Women’ and ‘Celebrity Big Brother’.
‘Loose Women’ hit headlines with a row between Coleen Nolan and Kim Woodburn last month, while the last series of ‘CBB’ was marred by controversy over Roxanne Pallett’s false accusations of physical abuse against Ryan Thomas.
Ofcom said it had received 21,494 complaints about the Roxanne / Ryan drama, with a spokesperson revealing the Channel 5 show would be investigated to establish whether it “broke rules on offensive content”.
Some 7,900 viewers also complained about the ‘Loose Women’ panel’s treatment of Kim Woodburn, who eventually walked off set after a fraught exchange that saw her break down in tears.
The Ofcom representative said: “We are investigating whether this programme fell short of generally accepted standards.”
After ITV faced calls to axe her, Coleen Nolan has since announced she is taking an extended break from ‘Loose Women’ following the incident.
She recently made a tearful appearance on ‘This Morning’ where she claimed she had been sent vile messages from internet trolls, and expressed regret about how the segment turned out.
Meanwhile, Ryan Thomas has said that he doesn’t want Roxanne Pallett to “suffer”, after she faced a huge backlash over her claims he had “repeatedly and intentionally” hit her - something she later conceded was a “mistake” and an “exaggeration”.