The BRIT Awards 2026 received 148 Ofcom complaints after acceptance speeches and jokes from host Jack Whitehall were bleeped out during the ITV broadcast
Luke Littler and Angry Ginge presented the award for International Song of the Year at the 2026 BRIT Awards(Image: PA)
The BRIT Awards 2026 has faced a wave of Ofcom complaints.
The legendary music awards ceremony is renowned for contentious moments and edgy humour, but some viewers were left disgruntled with the live broadcast which transmitted on Saturday (March 1) evening.
Aired on ITV1 with a brief time delay from Manchester’s Co-Op Arena, audiences at home encountered numerous static noises employed to censor the programme.
This occurred whenever executives considered a gag or remark too provocative to broadcast and subsequently removed what had been uttered before transmission.
Viewers were displeased that the programme was so heavily censored and lodged complaints with Ofcom, reports the Mirror.
Comedian Jack Whitehall sparked complaints from ITV viewers(Image: Getty Images)
A spokesperson for the broadcasting regulator confirmed that the bulk of the 148 complaints concerned “elements of acceptance speeches being edited and some related to jokes made by presenter Jack Whitehall”.
The comedian has presented the BRITs for five years and is recognised for his boundary-pushing wit.
During the live transmission, host Jack had one of his segments muted after addressing a table of politicians including Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham and Lisa Nandy.
Following his remarks about the table, he was silenced as he announced: “So many politicians! I thought I saw Peter Mandelson on the list. Oh no sorry, that was another list, my bad.”
Noel Gallagher was silenced towards the end of his stage appearance as he received the Songwriter of the Year award(Image: Getty Images)
Another censored moment involved I’m A Celebrity champion Angry Ginge, whose real name is Morgan Burthwistle, who appeared on stage to present an award with darts star Luke Littler.
The Salford-born star informed the audience that he was pleased the Brits had come to Manchester and “people are realising that London is a s**thole”, a comment which was also omitted from the televised broadcast.
Happy Mondays icons Shaun Ryder and Bez also found themselves in hot water when discussing their notoriously hedonistic and drug-fuelled youth with Jack, parts of which were also edited out.
Additionally, rock legend Noel Gallagher was silenced towards the end of his stage appearance as he received the Songwriter of the Year award for his 35-year career with Oasis and the music that has shaped subsequent generations.
Brit Awards 2026 is available to watch on ITVX
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