Nella Rose and Fred Sirieix’s heated row on I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here! received nearly 900 complaints, Ofcom has said.
The broadcasting watchdog reported that 907 complaints were made about the episode on November 21, with 861 related to the clash between the pair after First Dates star Sirieix remarked that he was old enough to be YouTuber Rose’s father.
Rose, who has lost both her parents, did not say anything at the time but later confronted Sirieix, saying: “Don’t bring up my dead parents, are you stupid?”
She said she no longer wanted to speak to him and would not eat any food he has prepared.
‘I accept your apology but let’s not be friends, how about that?’ #ImACeleb pic.twitter.com/3iVdTs9W13
— I’m A Celebrity… (@imacelebrity) November 21, 2023
After Sirieix apologised, she told him: “I accept your apology but let’s not be friends, how about that?”
In the Bush Telegraph, she said: “If I don’t like somebody, I’m not going to force myself to speak to them. This is not the kind of person I want to be around. These are not the kind of comments I want to be subject to.”
Rose’s friend and Love Island star, Indiyah Polack, said on ITV’s Lorraine at the time that she did not feel Sirieix had any “malicious intent” but noted that the emotions can run high when the contestants are contending with a lack of food and jungle conditions.
A few days later, Rose and Sirieix had to represent the Home Camp in a challenge which saw them take on actor Nick Pickard and JLS star Marvin Humes from the Away Camp.
They took it in turns to dunk their opponents in an ice tank and score points, with Rose and Sirieix exchanging high fives and sharing a hug at the end of the challenge, which they won.
In the debate, the YouTuber accused the GB News presenter of wanting people like her “gone” from the UK as she spoke to him about remarks he has made about reducing immigration numbers.
Rose asked the former Ukip leader “apparently you’re anti-immigrants” which she said she had read off the internet, before asking “why don’t black people like you?”
Farage said “you’d be amazed, they do”, to which Rose replied “so everyone hates you for no reason?”
Farage said the accusations were “grossly unfair” before adding: “All I’ve said is we cannot go on with the numbers coming to Britain that are coming.”
GB News presenter Farage argued that the pressure of the number of people coming to the UK was affecting GP appointments to which Rose countered that it is due to the NHS “lacking funding”.
She added: “You want us gone, that’s all I understood” to which he Farage replied that Rose was not listening to him, before adding “we can agree to disagree”.
ITV has been contacted for comment.
