ITV has suffered a major blow after several of its shows received official complaints to Ofcom, with Love Island and This Morning and Celebrity Big Brother amongst them
This Morning received hundreds of complaints after Rylan Clark made controversial comments on immigration(Image: Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock)
ITV has suffered a major blow after several of its shows received official complaints. The TV and entertainment experts at OLBG have analysed Ofcom complaints data to reveal the TV shows that have amassed the most viewer complaints in 2025, and several titles from the broadcaster have made the list.
Love Island has hit the top spot, with the ITV2 dating show, which recently crowned Toni Laites and Cach Mercer as its most recent winners, notched up 13,585 complaints.
It wasn’t looking good for its spin-off All Stars either, which is due to return next year for a third series, as the show, which brings back famous faces from the villa, received 2,264 in total.
Love Island, which wrapped up its latest series in July, has taken the top spot with nearly 14,000 complaints(Image: Matt Frost/ITV/Shutterstock)
Celebrity Big Brother also made the list, just a month after Coronation Street favourite Jack P Shepherd was crowned the winner of this year’s edition of the hit reality series. In total,1,224 complained to Ofcom about goings on in the house.
ITV1’s This Morning is a newcomer to the top 10. Towards the end of August, Rylan Clark, who was co-presenting with Josie Gibson, shared his strong opinions on illegal immigration in the UK, which generated 713 Ofcom complaints. Later that day, Rylan Clark took to Instagram to release a statement explaining his stance.
At first, he said: “I find it absolutely insane that all these people are risking their lives coming across the Channel. And when they get here, it does seem, and I think this is why a lot of Labour voters as well are saying there’s something wrong, it feels like, ‘Welcome, come on in’. That’s the narrative we’re being fed.
“Here’s the iPad. Here’s the NHS in reception of your hotel. Here’s three meals a day. Here’s a games room in the hotel. Have a lovely time and welcome.”
Hours later, Rylan took to his Instagram where he wrote: “You can be pro immigration and against illegal routes. You can support trans people and have the utmost respect for women. You can be heterosexual and still support gay rights. The list continues. Stop with this putting everyone in a box exercise and maybe have conversations instead of shouting on twitter!”
Celebrity Big Brother has also received hundreds of complaints, just months after Coronation Street star Jack P Shepherd was voted the public’s favourite housemate (Image: Vianney Le Caer/REX/Shutterstock for Big Brother)
Other shows to make the top 10 complaints include Vanessa Feltz’ eponymous Channel 5 programme, a natural rival to Loose Women, thanks to its air time. The chat show received 1,986 complaints in total, whilst GB News’ Headliners notched up 1,347 and Today With Samantha Washington by Sky News received 1,270. Filling out the Top 10 was Martin Daubney (with Alex Armstrong) on GB News, which received 301 complaints from viewers.
The complaints come amid major budget cuts for ITV, which will bring about massive changes to its soaps and Daytime output for 2026.
Kevin Lygo, Managing Director of ITV’s Media and Entertainment Division, announced the big changes in May, and insisted that they will allow the company to ‘deliver’ to the audience whilst also investing in other genres.
He said: “Daytime is a really important part of what we do, and these scheduling and production changes will enable us to continue to deliver a schedule providing viewers with the news, debate and discussion they love from the presenters they know and trust as well generating savings which will allow us to reinvest across the programme budget in other genres.
“These changes also allow us to consolidate our news operations and expand our national, international and regional news output and to build upon our proud history of trusted journalism at a time when our viewers need accurate, unbiased news coverage more than ever.
“I recognise that our plans will have an impact on staff off-screen in our Daytime production teams.” He added: “We will work with ITV Studios and ITN as they manage these changes to produce the shows differently from next year, and support them through this transition.“Daytime has been a core element of ITV’s schedule for over 40 years and these changes will set ITV up to continue to bring viewers award-winning news, views and discussion as we enter our eighth decade.”
Strictly Come Dancing is due to come back to our screens next weekend as a host of all-new contestants get ready to take to the dance floor
Ross will be on the next series of Strictly(Image: PA)
Strictly Come Dancing’sRoss King has been dealt a huge blow just days before the latest series’ launch show. The showbiz expert is just one of a collection of celebs that are set to put on their dancing shoes next week.
However, it isn’t looking good for the ITV correspondent as he hasn’t been dealt great odds for success. Ross is one of this year’s contestants among the likes of Dani Dyer, Vicky Pattison and Lewis Cope.
He is due to take to the dance floor next Saturday as the latest series begins on September 20. It’s not yet known who he has been partnered up with out of the professional dancers.
Betway have released their odds and it’s not looking too good for Ross. Ross has been placed at the bottom of the pile with odds of 66/1 of lifting the glitterball trophy.
Leading the way is Emmerdale star Lewis Cope with 11/4 odds of winning, while Ellie Goldstein is a close second contender of lifting the trophy with odds of 3/1 and Love Island winner Dani Dyer remains at 4/1.
It was revealed back in August that Ross would be one of this year’s contestants. He has since opened up about what training for the show has looked like for him.
Appearing on ITV’s Lorraine, he said: “It has been absolutely amazing. The sun is shining and Glasgow has never looked better. I’ve seen so much of it because I’ve not been particularly training, but I have been walking a lot.
“I’ve been trying to keep up the training. Yesterday, my niece and nephew made me the biggest Sunday roast I have had in years. I’ve also been partaking in a delicacy here, which is rolling slices, and the people have been lovely.”
The star then went on to talk about how he feels about being at the bottom of another bookies’ odds. Ross explained: “”I felt a bit of pressure, of course, because I’m representing Lorraine, and I saw Alice Beer, who said I’m representing daytime.
“And then of course here they are saying I’m representing Scotland, but the great thing is I discovered today with the Bookies that I’m last at 50/1 to win, so the pressure is completely off me now.”
Ross said it is a “dream come true” to be competing on Strictly Come Dancing this year. He will be dancing beside celebs such as Harry Aikines-Aryeetey, Alex Kingston, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, George Clarke and La Voix.
This year’s line-up also features EastEnders star Balvinder Sopal, Chris Robshaw, Ellie Goldstein, Thomas Skinner and Stefan Dennis. The contestants will be trying to win the praise of the iconic judging panel.
Returning to their annual judging duties will be Shirley Ballas, Motsi Mabuse, Craig Revel Horwood and previous professional dancer Anton Du Beke.
Strictly Come Dancing is set to return to screens September 20 on BBC One.
TRANSFER Deadline Day is fast approaching as clubs look to finalise their summer business before the September 1 deadline!
Chelsea are in advanced talks to sign Manchester United winger Alejandro Garnacho, according to reports.
Meanwhile, Tottenham have reportedly been dealt a huge blow in their pursuit of Manchester City winger Savinho, with the Brazilian expected to stay at the Etihad.
Elsewhere, Alexander Isak has reportedly told Newcastle that he still wants to join Liverpool after talks with the Toon’s Saudi owners.
BBC Sport pundit Julien Laurens believes Lucas Chevalier recovered well from his early mistake in his PSG debut and has dealt with the pressure of replacing Gianluigi Donnarumma, as the French goalkeeper saved a penalty to help PSG beat Tottenham Hotspur win the UEFA Super Cup in Udine.
Coronation Street’s Abi Webster (Sally Carman) was dealt with some major truths as her affair with her brother-in-law Carl Webster (Jonathan Howard) heated up on Monday night’s episode
20:55, 04 Aug 2025Updated 21:08, 04 Aug 2025
Coronation Street’s Abi Webster discovered the truth about Carl on Monday night’s episode(Image: ITV)
Abi Webster on Coronation Street was dealt with a series of truth bombshells as her affair with her brother-in-law Carl heated up during Monday night’s episode.
The mechanic, played by Sally Carman, is married to Kevin Webster (Michael Le Vell) on the ITV soap but viewers have seen things bubbling away between her and Carl (Jonathan Howard) for several weeks now. Things came to a head last week when she found out that Kevin, who was diagnosed with testicular cancer earlier this year, had chosen not to tell her that he had been given the all-clear as he suspected something was up.
It was then that Abi finally decided to act on her feelings for Carl and they became physical at the garage, but Abi called the whole thing off just hours later when Carl urged her to go back to her husband. As viewers will know, this was because Kevin discovered that Carl that he and accomplice Fiona Morley (Sara Poyzer) had organised the theft of an expensive car, and could have him arrested at any moment. It comes as one Coronation Street star announced an abrupt exit which saw their alter-ego ‘killed off’ without warning.
Abi had spent the day trying to cool things off with Carl but had discovered that her husband Kevin (Michael Le Vell) had also been lying to her(Image: ITV)
On Monday, when barmaid Glenda Shuttleworth (Jodie Prenger) asked Kevin how his cancer treatment was going, he could not come up with a lie quick enough, so Abi took it upon herself to announce that Kevin had finished his chemo and had been given the all-clear, but covered for him by not revealing that this had actually been the case for several weeks. Glenda announced the news to the pub, and Kevin kept up his pretence as she insisted on giving him a pint on the house as the other Weatherfield residents congratulated him.
While it initially looked like Carl had set his sights on Tracy Barlow (Kate Ford) after buying her a drink in the pub, he was soon seen in bed with Abi, who had called round after becoming jealous that Carl had possibly invited Tracy round. Afterwards, he told her: “I didn’t have that on my to-do list. I will have to go to the Rovers more often!” But when Carl received a threatening text message from Fiona about their dodgy dealings, he had to reveal all to Abi after they got dressed. He confessed: “I have seriously messed up. I’ve been doing illegal MOT inspections. For that Fiona. Write-offs, cut and shuts. You name it, I’ve passed them all. And I’ve been doing it from Kev’s garage.”
He tried to explain to a shocked Abi that he had only been doing it to settle huge debts he had accrued but she shot back: “You told me that debt was paid! You lied?! Oh there’s a surprise! Those cars were not roadworthy. Someone could’ve died. Did it give you a bit of a thrill, ruining your brother’s business and then bedding his missus for good measure?!”
In the end, Abi agreed to be Carl’s ‘little secret’ and the pair leapt back into bed together for the second time that day(Image: ITV)
Amidst all this, Kevin invited Abi on a last-minute holiday with him but she told him that she has not forgiven him for all the lies he told her about his cancer. Following a heart-to-heart with her sister-in-law Debbie Webster (Sue Devaney), who was diagnosed with vascular dementia earlier this year, she accepted the invitation but demanded to know from Kevin why he failed to tell her about the MOT scam.
He explained: “Firstly, we couldn’t report it to the police, not without doing damage to the business. And secondly, he’s still my brother and I suppose I’m trying to protect him. For now, we forget about Carl, and concentrate on our marriage. He’s gone from the garage, he’s out of our lives and now it’s about us.”
Despite this, as Kevin was speaking to Abi, she received a text message and quickly read it before putting her phone back in her pocket. She then confronted Carl about the lies he had been telling, and he told her that he had been ‘blackmailed’ after he found out that about the cancer lie. She said: “I came here to call it off, to tell you that I’d forgiven him and I was going to make my marriage work,” but Carl quickly told Abu that she was no longer in love with Kevin.
She confirmed: “Yeah, but he loves me and even with the lies he makes me feel safe,” and reminded Carl that she has her son Alfie to think about as well. In deciding to keep their affair going, Carl vowed to be Abi’s ‘little secret’ for the time being and the pair promptly hopped back into bed together.
He told The Mirror : “Being in Coronation Street is just as big a thrill as being in a Hollywood film or an American TV series. It’s all the same, everyone’s telling stories, whether it’s a big $200m movie or a soap like Corrie. As a Lancashire lad born and raised, the dream was to be in Coronation Street – that was the ceiling, so it feels wonderfully surreal to now be acting with people like Kevin Webster that I watched religiously as a kid.
“My friends ask me, ‘what you have been up to today?’ and I reply ‘I took Tracy Barlow for a drink in the Rovers Return!’ It’s just incredible to say these things.”
Washington, DC – The family of Sayfollah Musallet, the United States citizen who was beaten to death by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank last week, is calling for justice.
Musallet’s relatives want Washington to launch its own investigation into the incident to ensure accountability.
The Florida-born 20-year-old is the ninth US citizen to be killed by Israeli settlers or soldiers since 2022. None of the previous cases have led to criminal charges or US sanctions against the perpetrators.
That lack of response is what advocates call a “pattern of impunity”, wherein Washington demands a probe without placing any significant pressure on Israel to produce results.
In Musallet’s case, the administration of President Donald Trump urged Israel to “aggressively” investigate the killing.
“There must be accountability for this criminal and terrorist act,” Mike Huckabee, the US ambassador to Israel, said in a statement on Tuesday.
It is not clear if the US has taken any further actions to seek justice in the aftermath of the fatal beating.
Critics say the “pattern of impunity” stems in part from the historically close bonds between the US and Israel. Successive presidential administrations in the US have affirmed their “unwavering” support for Israel, and the US provides Israel with billions of dollars in military aid annually.
Here, Al Jazeera looks at who the eight other victims were, how the US has responded to their killing and where their cases stand.
Omar Assad
Assad, a 78-year-old Palestinian American, was driving home in the occupied West Bank after visiting friends on January 12, 2022, when Israeli soldiers stopped him at a checkpoint.
According to the autopsy report and his family’s account, the troops dragged Assad out of his car and then handcuffed, gagged and blindfolded him, leaving him to die at a cold construction site.
The administration of then-President Joe Biden called on Israel to launch a criminal investigation into the incident.
But Assad’s relatives and lawmakers from his home state of Milwaukee wanted Washington to conduct its own probe – a demand that never materialised.
As is often the case, Israel’s investigation into its own soldiers’ conduct did not lead to any criminal charges.
In 2023, the Israeli army said that it found no “causal link” between the way its soldiers treated Assad and his death.
The Biden administration also declined to apply sanctions under US law to the Israeli unit that killed Assad: the Netzah Yehuda, a battalion notorious for its abuses against Palestinians in the West Bank.
Last year, the US Department of State announced that the battalion will still be eligible for US aid under the Leahy Law, which prohibits military assistance for security units involved in human rights violations.
Shireen Abu Akleh
Abu Akleh, a veteran Al Jazeera reporter, was fatally shot by Israeli forces during a raid in Jenin in the occupied West Bank on May 11, 2022.
Owing to her status as one of the most celebrated journalists in the Middle East, her killing sparked international outrage from rights groups and press freedom advocates.
Despite the global attention, Israeli forces attacked her funeral in Jerusalem, beating the pallbearers carrying her coffin with batons.
A portrait of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh is displayed during a memorial mass held at a church in Beit Hanina in occupied East Jerusalem [AFP]
Israel initially denied killing Abu Akleh, 51, falsely claiming that the reporter was shot by armed Palestinians.
Months later, after multiple visual investigations showed that Israeli soldiers targeted Abu Akleh, Israel acknowledged that its forces likely killed the reporter, dismissing the incident as an accident.
The Biden administration faced waves of pleas by legislators and rights groups to launch its own investigation into the killing, but it resisted the calls, arguing that Israel is capable of investigating itself.
In November 2022, Israeli media reports claimed that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was investigating the shooting of Abu Akleh, but the US Department of Justice never confirmed the probe.
More than three years after Abu Akleh’s killing, her family and supporters say justice in her case has not been served.
Tawfiq Ajaq
Born in Louisiana, Ajaq was 17 when he visited the occupied West Bank to see his relatives last year.
On January 19, 2024, he was driving a pick-up truck with his friends when Israelis sprayed the vehicle with bullets and killed him.
Mohammed Salameh, who witnessed and survived the attack, said the shooting was unprovoked.
While it is not clear which individual shot Ajaq, Israel said the incident involved “an off-duty law enforcement officer, a soldier and a civilian” and was sparked by “rock-throwing activities” – a claim that Salameh has denied.
The US State Department called for an “urgent investigation to determine the circumstance” of the incident.
But more than 19 months after the shooting, Israel has not publicly released any findings or charged any suspect in the shooting.
“We feel abandoned by our government,” Ajaq’s uncle, Mohammad Abdeljabbar, told Al Jazeera last year.
Mohammad Khdour
Khdour was also 17 when he was killed under almost identical circumstances to Ajaq just weeks later.
According to his cousin Malek Mansour, who witnessed the attack, an unidentified assailant opened fire at their car in the occupied West Bank from a vehicle with an Israeli number plate.
Mansour said the attack was unprovoked. Khdour died on February 10, 2024.
The two had been eating cookies and taking selfies moments before the shooting.
Once again, Washington called for a probe.
“There needs to be an investigation. We need to get the facts. And if appropriate, there needs to be accountability,” then-Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters at that time.
But advocates say that, while normally Israel launches sham investigations into such incidents, Israeli authorities have not acknowledged Khdour’s killing at all.
The Israeli military and police told the publication Haaretz last year that they are not familiar with the case.
Jacob Flickinger
An Israeli air strike targeted a World Central Kitchen (WCK) vehicle in Gaza on April 1, 2024, killing seven aid workers, sparking anger and condemnation across the world.
Among the victims was Flickinger, a 33-year-old US-Canadian dual citizen.
Biden called for a “swift” Israeli investigation into the attack, which he said “must bring accountability”.
But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the blast a “tragic accident”.
A vehicle for the World Central Kitchen sits charred in the central Gaza Strip after a deadly Israeli strike, on April 2, 2024 [Ahmed Zakot/Reuters]
The Israeli military said the commander who ordered the strike had “mistakenly assumed” that gunmen in the area were in the aid vehicle.
It added that the commander did not identify the car as associated with World Central Kitchen, a well-known hunger relief initiative founded by celebrity chef Jose Andres.
A World Central Kitchen logo was displayed prominently on the top of the vehicle before the attack.
Israel said it dismissed two commanders over the incident, but there were no criminal charges.
Last year, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu and his former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant for using starvation as a weapon of war in Gaza as well as other alleged war crimes.
Aysenur Ezgi Eygi
Eygi, born in Washington state, was participating in a protest against an illegal settler outpost in the West Bank on September 6, 2024, when an Israeli soldier shot her in the head.
She was 26.
While there were reports of a scuffle during a crackdown on the demonstration by Israeli forces, several witnesses have said that Eygi was shot during a calm period after the chaos had ended.
The State Department called on Israel to “quickly and robustly” investigate Eygi’s killing, but it ruled out conducting its own probe.
Biden dismissed her death as an “accident”, but Blinken condemned it as “unprovoked and unjustified”.
On the same day that Eygi was fatally shot by Israel, the US Justice Department filed charges against Hamas leaders after the killing of US-Israeli captive Hersh Goldberg-Polin in Gaza.
The Israeli military said its soldiers likely killed Eygi “indirectly and unintentionally” – a conclusion that her family called offensive, stressing that she was targeted by a sniper.
“The disregard shown for human life in the inquiry is appalling,” the family said in a statement.
Trump ally Randy Fine, now a Congress member, celebrated the killing of Eygi. “One less #MuslimTerrorist,” he wrote in a social media post, referring to the shooting.
Kamel Jawad
When Jawad, a celebrated leader in the Lebanese American community in Michigan, was killed by an Israeli air strike in south Lebanon on October 1 of last year, the Biden administration initially denied he was a US citizen.
Washington later acknowledged that Jawad was American, expressing “alarm” over his killing.
“As we have noted repeatedly, it is a moral and strategic imperative that Israel take all feasible precautions to mitigate civilian harm. Any loss of civilian life is a tragedy,” the US State Department said at that time.
Israel has not commented publicly on the strike that killed Jawad.
The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) slammed the Biden administration’s handling of the case, including the US government’s initial “smug” response.
“It’s as if they’re intentionally trying to see our people killed, intentionally downplaying us and dehumanising us,” ADC executive director Abed Ayoub told Al Jazeera last year.
Amer Rabee
On April 6, Israeli forces in the West Bank fatally shot 14-year-old Rabee, a New Jersey native, and called him a “terrorist”. Two of his friends were also injured in the attack.
While the Israeli military accused Rabee and his friends of throwing rocks at Israeli vehicles, the slain teenager’s family insisted that he was picking almonds on the side of the road.
The Trump administration failed to pursue accountability in the case or even publicly press for further details about the incident.
Instead, the State Department cited the Israeli account about the 14-year-old’s killing.
“We offer our sincerest condolences to the family on their loss,” the State Department said at that time. “We acknowledge the [Israeli military’s] initial statement that expressed that this incident occurred during a counter-terrorism operation.”