ITV has been hit with 4,165 Ofcom complaints after Bridgerton star Adjoa Andoh prompted fury by calling the Buckingham Palace balcony ‘terribly white’ – making it the most complained about moment of the year.
The actress, who appeared as a guest during ITV’s coverage of King Charles III’s Coronation, made the comment when the royals were standing on the Buckingham Palace balcony to watch the traditional Red Arrows flypast.
Ms Andoh, 60, who plays Lady Agatha Danbury in the Netflix show, said: ‘Looking at all those young people, there is a bit of me that has gone from the rich diversity of the Abbey to the terribly white balcony. I’m very struck by that.
‘I am also looking at those younger generations and thinking: ”What are the nuances that they will inhabit when they grow?”
But her comments were met with a fierce backlash among disappointed viewers who pledged to report it to the watchdog.
The actress backtracked the following day, insisting in a BBC interview that she’d meant no offence – but that too sparked another furious response from listeners who criticised the presenter for failing to challenge her views. Instead, Radio 4 host Paddy O’Connell told Ms Andoh she had ‘nothing to apologise for’.
Ofcom has now received a staggering 4,165 complaints, making it the most complained about moment this year. It has attracted almost double the amount of complaints made after a segment on the Jeremy Vine Show about junior doctors.
Adjoa Andoh stunned viewers by calling the Buckingham Palace balcony ‘terribly white’
Ms Andoh said on Saturday: ‘We have gone from the rich diversity of the Abbey to a terribly white balcony. I am very struck by that’
Numerous people took to Twitter to voice their outrage. with one commenter slamming her comments as ‘ridiculous’ and asking: ‘How can she get away with that? Any white person would have to make a public apology.’
In comparison, Jeremy Vine’s Channel 5 show was hit with 2,250 complaints after a discussion about junior doctors’ pay dispute.
Ms Andoh’s comments prompted a major backlash on social media, with one Twitter user asking: ‘Why is it OK to dismiss a white family for being white?’
A second said: ‘I’m disappointed in Adjoa Andoh. The #Coronation focused on promoting positive race relations & representing modern Britain.
‘There were many people from diverse backgrounds who had prominent positions yesterday, and yet Adjoa chose to discriminate with her divisive comment.’
And a third added: ‘Why make such an appalling #whitebalcony comment?! Appalling.’
Andoh later appeared on BBC Radio 4 to clarify what she meant and apologise.
She said: ‘I think I upset a few people yesterday.
‘I was talking about the day and how marvellous it was and then looking at the balcony at the end and suddenly going: ‘Oh it’s so white!’ because the day had been so mixed and I didn’t mean to upset anybody.’
Bridgerton Star Adjoa Andoh, pictured outside the BBC, insisted she ‘didn’t mean to upset anyone’ after sparking backlash by calling the Buckingham Palace balcony ‘terribly white’ on Coronation Day
The BBC is also facing backlash over the interview with Radio 4’s Paddy O’Connell after he told Ms Andoh she had ‘nothing to apologise for’.
One Twitter user said in response: ‘Bridgerton star Adjoa Andoh has just tried to back track on @bbcradio4, about her comment that the Buckingham Palace balcony was ‘terribly white’.
‘And then the presenter Paddy O’Connell tells her that she’s got nothing to apologise for. Please don’t speak for me!’
Another critic tweeted that her comments were ‘outrageous’ and create ‘division’ while another said: ‘Paddy O’Connell is an enabler. Where is the impartiality @BBCRadio4?’
The moment is now the most complained about of the year so far. In second place was a comment on the Jeremy Vine Show about junior doctors, which attracted more than 2,250 complaints for several supposed errors.
In third place was Capital Radio DJ Ant Payne’s ‘insensitive’ joke about earthquake-hit Turkey.
The presenter, who hosts the 4pm to 7pm slot on the station, said while on-air on Monday February 13 that ‘now is actually the best time’ to start looking for ‘cheap flights’ to the country.
He also joked that listeners could ‘get your teeth done while you are over there’ and ‘come back looking 19-years-old’, adding: ‘You will be on Love Island next year if you are doing that.’
A total of 1,430 complained as a result.
The most-complained about programme of 2022 was Love Island which received 2,360 complaints on July 17 after alleged misogynistic and bullying behaviour by some contestants in the villa.
In second place was I’m a Celebrity…. Get me out of here! from November 6-27 where viewers objected to the inclusion of Matt Hancock in the series.
Other notable complained about moments included 860 complaints against comments made by Richard Madeley about death threats to Keir Starmer on Good Morning Britain.
Another large talking point was Gary Neville’s ‘politicised’ comments during the World Cup Final in 2022, which received 605 complaints as well.
Ms Andoh, 60, who plays Lady Danbury in Bridgerton, left fellow pundit Myleene Klass – who was sitting next to her – appearing bewildered as she made her comments.
The actress, who played Dr Isaacs in the psychological thriller Fractured, as well as DI Nina Rosen in BBC’s Silent Witness, has enjoyed a successful career in TV, film and on the stage.
She made her Hollywood debut in 2009 in Clint Eastwood’s hit-film Invictus alongside Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon.
Andoh (left) stunned her ITV co-stars when she referred to the Buckingham Palace balcony as being ‘terribly white’ during their live Coronation coverage
The actress plays Lady Danbury, pictured left, in the popular period TV series Bridgerton
Ms Andoh made her Hollywood debut in 2009 in Clint Eastwood’s hit-film Invictus alongside Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon
Ten years later, she co-directed and played Richard II at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, in the UK’s first all women-of-colour production.
Ms Andoh’s comments come after TV historian Professor David Olusoga warned that the future of the monarchy was ‘open to discussion’ and that it could be a struggle to modernise.
The University of Manchester professor told the BBC: ‘Now a new reign formally begins, lots of questions about the monarchy and his role are up for discussion as they always are and always have been.
‘I think it’s more difficult with a thousand-year-old ceremony to reflect the fact that we are one of the most secular nations in the world.
‘There’s only so much you can modernise a thousand-year-old ceremony without it stopping being that ceremony.’
He added: ‘I’d like to think that he’ll find ways of modernising the Royal Family but I do think it’s a challenge.’
Ms Andoh said that she made the comment because the Westminster Abbey service (pictured) had featured ‘rich diversity’
Radio presenter Paddy O’Connell told Adjoa that she hadn’t ‘upset anyone’
TV historian Professor David Olusoga warned that the future of the monarchy was ‘open to discussion’ and that it could be a struggle to modernise
