Ant McPartlin is under fire for making “degrading” comments on an I’m a Celebrity aftershow.
The TV host, who last night infuriated viewers of the ITV reality series with a shock announcement, recently made a series of comments to two members of the show’s production team during an unscripted Instagram series discussing the events of the day.
MailOnline reports that recent episodes of Jungle Club, which is unaffiliated with ITV and goes out on McParlin and Declan Donnelly’s Instagram page, saw McPartlin repeatedly making comments about two unseen colleagues’ appearances, relationship statuses and sex lives.
At one stage, Donnelly, who could be seen taking the majority of McPartlin’s comments as a joke, reportedly urged his presenting partner to stop, stating: “Let’s leave that; we’re getting into murky waters.”
McPartlin’s spokesperson suggested the comments were harmless, explaining that “much of the comedy programme’s content deliberately leans into Ant and Dec’s comedic friendship and working relationship with the crew”.
On Wednesday (27 November), McPartlin, encouraged by laughter in the studio, repeatedly said one colleague was “fit” and added that another could both “give it and take it”.
Acknowledging the double entendre, the TV host raised his eyebrows and quipped: “Oops – cheeky.”
The dating and sex lives of both women have come up a few times in the Instagram series, with McPartlin paying particular attention to their thumb rings.
He asked: “Is that a thing that you wear a ring on your thumb when you’re single? And then when you get with a boy, you pop it off? Anyone who wants to date Lola, send some pictures of yourself.”
He then referred to the jewellery item as “virginity rings” and, when he noticed they were missing, he asked them if they were “having a nice time” in Australia while filming the show.
On another episode, as McPartlin and Donnelly fed each other sausages, the former, addressing a colleague named Lola, said: “Would you like..?” However, he stopped himself and said to Donnelly: “No? Inappropriate?” to which his co-host chimed in: “HR is going to be here in a minute.”
An additional moment saw him ask Lola to lick icing off his fingers, eventually telling her: “I’ll save it for you later.”
Women’s rights campaigner Patsy Stevenson criticised McPartlin’s remarks, telling the outlet they “reflect a culture of casual sexism that undermines women in the workplace.”
She continued: “The comments about ‘licking toppings’ and asking for photos of potential suitors are particularly degrading and verge on harassment. For someone in Ant’s position, there is a responsibility to lead by example.”
The Independent has contacted McPartlin for additional comment.
