Comic's BGT appearance swamped Ofcom

Nabil Abdulrashid’s performance on Britain’s Got Talent was one of the most complained-about moments of TV last year, Ofcom has revealed.

The comedian’s appearance sparked 2,253 complaints to the regulator, making it the fifth most contentions programme of the 12 months up to the end of March.

Another 1,189 people complained about the show three weeks later, with the number divided between those finding his gags offensive and those complaining that judge Amanda Holden’s dress was too revealing.

Ofcom rejected the complaints  with a spokesman explaining at the time: ‘The comedian's satirical take on his life experiences as a black Muslim was likely to have been within audience expectations.’

When he appeared in the  final Abdulrashid joked about the ‘snowflakes’ who complained, saying: ‘To be honest I'm shocked that many of them know how to write. They sent in thousands of angry letters. Hopefully if I annoy them today they can progress on to words.’

He later tweeted: ‘I'm just happy I've kept workers at Ofcom from being made redundant. I'm a hero and should be appreciated for my contribution to the economy. @Ofcom you're welcome.’

Abdulrashid - whohas complained that the mainstream comedy circuit marginalises black acts - later revealed he had death threats, following his appearance on the ITV show, saying: ‘ The hate has been vile. I’ve had death threats. I’ve had racist abuse from people, all kinds of stuff.’

But he said he also experienced ‘such an outpouring of support from people’.

Ofcom’s annual report says most complained-about moment was Piers Morgan’s dismissal of the Duchess of Sussex’s comments about feeling suicidal, which he made on Good Morning Britain  in March this year; and at No2 was Diversity’s dance on BGT on September 5 which made reference to the Black Lives Matter movement.

• Nabil Abdulrashid: 'I'll always be grateful for Britain's Got Talent'

Published: 10 Jul 2021