Big Brother has sparked controversy for pulling an episode from ITVX and re-uploading it after a contestant was seen wearing a pro-Palestine T-shirt.
Contestant Ali Bromley, 38, who is a forensic psychologist, wore a top depicting a map of Israel as a watermelon on the show’s Tuesday, 22 October episode.
The symbol, which is in the colours of the Palestinian flag, has become associated with the pro-Palestine movement amid the ongoing Gaza conflict, which has killed more than 42,000 people since 7 October.
Bromley’s T-shirt has been reported to be a “Freedom Melon Tee” from Wear The Peace, which donates all of its proceeds to the charity Pious Projects of America, who use the funds to supply medical aid, food, water and other necessities to people in Gaza.
The Big Brother contestant’s outfit choice quickly caused outrage, with The Campaign Against Antisemitism complaining to Ofcom, saying: “How is this becoming the norm?”
It continued: “This graphic has caused significant distress among the British Jewish community, who regard it as a genocidal message similar to the slogan ‘From the River to the Sea’, which calls for the elimination of the world’s only Jewish state.
“How did the show’s staff allow this shirt to be worn, let alone broadcast it on national television? This incident represents a serious violation of broadcasting standards.”
The Big Brother episode was removed from ITVX on Tuesday night and re-uploaded to the streaming service on Wednesday with Bromley’s T-shirt edited to be plain black.
A spokesperson for Big Brother told The Independent: “All Housemate items are checked by our production team before they go into the Big Brother House to ensure they comply with the Rules and compliance requirements.
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days
New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days
New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled
“Big Brother does not allow any personal items into the House that could be deemed harmful. We regret that the implications of this particular item of clothing were not fully understood in our bag checks or prior to the broadcast of last night’s show.
“We apologise to any viewers who have been offended by the broadcast and assure viewers that Big Brother was unaware of the implications of the image. The item of clothing has been removed from the House.
They continued: “The Housemate has been spoken to and they have expressed that they are unaware of the implications and did not wish to cause any harm or offence.
“Any offensive messaging associated with the image does not reflect the values or beliefs of Big Brother.”
ITVX also took to X/Twitter on Wednesday (23 October) to address Tuesday’s episode disappearing online, saying: “Regarding your question about last night’s Big Brother show, we have some news, it will be available to view later this evening.
“We apologise for the inconvenience caused by this but the wait will be worth it.”