Top 10 Controversies on The One Show
Welcome to WatchMojoUK, and today we're looking at “The One Show's” most contentious moments. Yes, this arguably wholesome show has made a lot of blunders over the years.
#10: Jermaine Jenas
After years fronting “The One Show”, Jermaine Jenas found himself sacked live on air. While presenting talkSPORT, the news broke that the pundit and ex-footballer had been dropped by the BBC. It came following allegations of misconduct from female colleagues; they said that Jenas had sent them inappropriate text messages and complained to the BBC. He was immediately dropped and Alex Jones spent the week presenting alone, with the show barely acknowledging that he was gone. The following week, an episode was actually pulled from airing. Jenas has only said that his lawyers are handling it, and it'll be a while before we know all the details of what went on.
#9: Rita Ora
In 2015, Rita Ora had just joined the judging panel on “The Voice”, and appeared with her fellow judges on “The One Show” to promote it. But viewers were very hung up on what Ora was wearing, with some thinking that her outfit was inappropriate for a teatime magazine show as it showed off her cleavage. Hundreds of people ended up complaining to the BBC for this, with people online insisting that while they weren't prudes, they found it, quote, “disgraceful” and “inappropriate”. Looking back, it was clearly a lot of fuss over nothing, with the BBC's statement saying that it was hardly surprising for an international pop star to wear a racy outfit, even if it WAS pre-watershed.
#8: Dan Stevens
Who knew that the tragic, former heir to Downton could be so controversial? This appearance was from 2022, as Stevens was promoting his latest mini-series, “Gaslit”, which dramatized much of the Watergate scandal. But as soon as he was asked about it he turned things around to be a joke at the expense of Boris Johnson, as this was when a different scandal, Partygate, was ongoing. The atmosphere in the studio got extremely tense, with everybody aware that Stevens had just caused “The One Show” to break its impartiality guidelines. The show was hit with complains and the BBC had to release a statement.
#7: Jimmy Carr
Did “The One Show's” producers know who Jimmy Carr was when they booked him to appear back in 2015? We're sure they did, and yet, people were still surprised when he told a string of highly offensive jokes – the very thing he's known for. He was on alongside Rod Stewart talking about their showbiz careers and how they'd known each other for years, but Carr couldn't resist dropping in a few of his trademark one-liners when invited to do so. Though very few people complained, Ofcom still ended up investigating Carr, and for once found that somebody HAD broken broadcasting rules. The BBC subsequently cracked down on offensive language.
#6: Rosie Jones
This was a controversy about a controversy back in 2023. At the time, disabled comedian Rosie Jones was promoting her documentary, which infamously used the R-slur in the title. There was a big debate around reclamation and whether it should be used, but when Jones appeared on “The One Show”, though she was there for the documentary, even she declined to name it on the BBC, as did the presenters. She did explain why she'd chosen the title despite all the backlash she got, largely from others in the disabled community, saying that she wanted to use a provocative title to force people to rethink their use of the word in the first place.
#5: Paul O'Grady
One of the most contentious shows ever aired in Britain, “Benefits Street” had everybody talking back in 2014. One of its staunchest critics was comedian Paul O'Grady, who was brought on to give a voice to the people who spoke against the show, said to make extreme poverty into entertainment. Coming from a working-class background himself, it's no surprise that O'Grady saw through the exploitation of “Benefits Street”, and he went on to argue in favour of various policies like raising minimum wage while attacking Tory MPs. Some members of the public complained to the BBC, though, saying that because O'Grady hadn't been challenged, impartiality had been compromised. O'Grady later claimed to have been permanently banned from “The One Show”.
#4: Jordan Shelley
While some of “The One Show's” controversies look a bit silly, this one was anything but. The show hired a new dog expert, Jordan Shelley, to lead what was presumably intended to be a long-running segment where he helps members of the public with their misbehaving dogs. But immediately, people took issue with Shelley's training methods. He was filmed being very aggressive with the dogs, even treading on one dog's foot, and it was actually brought up on-air by Alex Jones. The RSPCA soon got involved, investigating Shelley, and he was dropped. He was condemned by his colleagues, too, with the UK's foremost no-nonsense dog trainer, Victoria Stilwell from “It's Me or the Dog”, saying that what he did wasn't right.
#3: The Unnamed Presenter
In 2023, the news cycle was set alight by stories that an unnamed BBC presenter was being investigated for receiving explicit messages from someone under the age of 18. We now know that the presenter in question was Huw Edwards, who was arrested and plead guilty to similar offences the following year. But with allegations still circulating, “The One Show” caught some flak by not mentioning the scandal whatsoever. This is certainly a bizarre incident since it's not really the sort of reporting “The One Show” does, but some people were apparently desperate for Jermaine Jenas and Alex Jones to give a statement about what was happening elsewhere at the Beeb.
#2: Carol Thatcher
She was never hired full-time on “The One Show”, instead frequently appearing as a freelancer and debating the issues of the day. That was, until 2009, when a whistleblower on the production revealed that Thatcher had referred to a Black tennis player by an offensive slur beginning with “G”. She was immediately dropped, but this wasn't a case of he-said she-said. Thatcher didn't deny that she'd said it at all, and in fact went on “The Andrew Marr Show” in the following days to double-down, saying that she stood by it and refused to apologise – even though they'd've let her back onto the show had she done so.
#1: Jeremy Clarkson
Much like Jimmy Carr, getting Clarkson on any show is sure to earn the respect of some viewers and the ire of others. This time, Clarkson was asked for his views on public sector strikers and said a deeply inflammatory thing. But he made a joke out of it, saying the exact opposite thing, too, for balance. Anybody who saw the full clip realised the joke he was making, and yet it was still immediately followed up by an on-air condemnation from Matt Baker, much to Clarkson's annoyance. Whatever his intention, though, thousands of complaints were made; it seems that Baker's apology just wasn't good enough, because the show was made to apologise a second time.
Let us know in the comments who your favourite “One Show” presenter is.
Top 10 Controversies on The One Show
Welcome to WatchMojoUK, and today we’re looking at “The One Show’s” most contentious moments. Yes, this arguably wholesome show has made a lot of blunders over the years.
#10: Jermaine Jenas
After years fronting “The One Show”, Jermaine Jenas found himself sacked live on air. While presenting talkSPORT, the news broke that the pundit and ex-footballer had been dropped by the BBC. It came following allegations of misconduct from female colleagues; they said that Jenas had sent them inappropriate text messages and complained to the BBC. He was immediately dropped and Alex Jones spent the week presenting alone, with the show barely acknowledging that he was gone. The following week, an episode was actually pulled from airing. Jenas has only said that his lawyers are handling it, and it’ll be a while before we know all the details of what went on.
#9: Rita Ora
In 2015, Rita Ora had just joined the judging panel on “The Voice”, and appeared with her fellow judges on “The One Show” to promote it. But viewers were very hung up on what Ora was wearing, with some thinking that her outfit was inappropriate for a teatime magazine show as it showed off her cleavage. Hundreds of people ended up complaining to the BBC for this, with people online insisting that while they weren’t prudes, they found it, quote, “disgraceful” and “inappropriate”. Looking back, it was clearly a lot of fuss over nothing, with the BBC’s statement saying that it was hardly surprising for an international pop star to wear a racy outfit, even if it WAS pre-watershed.
#8: Dan Stevens
Who knew that the tragic, former heir to Downton could be so controversial? This appearance was from 2022, as Stevens was promoting his latest mini-series, “Gaslit”, which dramatized much of the Watergate scandal. But as soon as he was asked about it he turned things around to be a joke at the expense of Boris Johnson, as this was when a different scandal, Partygate, was ongoing. The atmosphere in the studio got extremely tense, with everybody aware that Stevens had just caused “The One Show” to break its impartiality guidelines. The show was hit with complains and the BBC had to release a statement.
#7: Jimmy Carr
Did “The One Show’s” producers know who Jimmy Carr was when they booked him to appear back in 2015? We’re sure they did, and yet, people were still surprised when he told a string of highly offensive jokes – the very thing he’s known for. He was on alongside Rod Stewart talking about their showbiz careers and how they’d known each other for years, but Carr couldn’t resist dropping in a few of his trademark one-liners when invited to do so. Though very few people complained, Ofcom still ended up investigating Carr, and for once found that somebody HAD broken broadcasting rules. The BBC subsequently cracked down on offensive language.
#6: Rosie Jones
This was a controversy about a controversy back in 2023. At the time, disabled comedian Rosie Jones was promoting her documentary, which infamously used the R-slur in the title. There was a big debate around reclamation and whether it should be used, but when Jones appeared on “The One Show”, though she was there for the documentary, even she declined to name it on the BBC, as did the presenters. She did explain why she’d chosen the title despite all the backlash she got, largely from others in the disabled community, saying that she wanted to use a provocative title to force people to rethink their use of the word in the first place.
#5: Paul O’Grady
One of the most contentious shows ever aired in Britain, “Benefits Street” had everybody talking back in 2014. One of its staunchest critics was comedian Paul O’Grady, who was brought on to give a voice to the people who spoke against the show, said to make extreme poverty into entertainment. Coming from a working-class background himself, it’s no surprise that O’Grady saw through the exploitation of “Benefits Street”, and he went on to argue in favour of various policies like raising minimum wage while attacking Tory MPs. Some members of the public complained to the BBC, though, saying that because O’Grady hadn’t been challenged, impartiality had been compromised. O’Grady later claimed to have been permanently banned from “The One Show”.
#4: Jordan Shelley
While some of “The One Show’s” controversies look a bit silly, this one was anything but. The show hired a new dog expert, Jordan Shelley, to lead what was presumably intended to be a long-running segment where he helps members of the public with their misbehaving dogs. But immediately, people took issue with Shelley’s training methods. He was filmed being very aggressive with the dogs, even treading on one dog’s foot, and it was actually brought up on-air by Alex Jones. The RSPCA soon got involved, investigating Shelley, and he was dropped. He was condemned by his colleagues, too, with the UK’s foremost no-nonsense dog trainer, Victoria Stilwell from “It’s Me or the Dog”, saying that what he did wasn’t right.
#3: The Unnamed Presenter
In 2023, the news cycle was set alight by stories that an unnamed BBC presenter was being investigated for receiving explicit messages from someone under the age of 18. We now know that the presenter in question was Huw Edwards, who was arrested and plead guilty to similar offences the following year. But with allegations still circulating, “The One Show” caught some flak by not mentioning the scandal whatsoever. This is certainly a bizarre incident since it’s not really the sort of reporting “The One Show” does, but some people were apparently desperate for Jermaine Jenas and Alex Jones to give a statement about what was happening elsewhere at the Beeb.
#2: Carol Thatcher
She was never hired full-time on “The One Show”, instead frequently appearing as a freelancer and debating the issues of the day. That was, until 2009, when a whistleblower on the production revealed that Thatcher had referred to a Black tennis player by an offensive slur beginning with “G”. She was immediately dropped, but this wasn’t a case of he-said she-said. Thatcher didn’t deny that she’d said it at all, and in fact went on “The Andrew Marr Show” in the following days to double-down, saying that she stood by it and refused to apologise – even though they’d’ve let her back onto the show had she done so.
#1: Jeremy Clarkson
Much like Jimmy Carr, getting Clarkson on any show is sure to earn the respect of some viewers and the ire of others. This time, Clarkson was asked for his views on public sector strikers and said a deeply inflammatory thing. But he made a joke out of it, saying the exact opposite thing, too, for balance. Anybody who saw the full clip realised the joke he was making, and yet it was still immediately followed up by an on-air condemnation from Matt Baker, much to Clarkson’s annoyance. Whatever his intention, though, thousands of complaints were made; it seems that Baker’s apology just wasn’t good enough, because the show was made to apologise a second time.
Let us know in the comments who your favourite “One Show” presenter is.
