LORRAINE Kelly ripped into Nigel Farage with a comment about his age that one viewer described as “savage”.
The former UKIP leader is currently appearing on the latest season of I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here!
The appearance by the right-wing politician – which will reportedly see him earn a record fee of £1.5 million – is already said to have sparked more than 1000 complaints.
A campaign calling on the public to boycott the show has also been launched by pro-EU campaign group Best for Britain, saying Farage is known for his “xenophobic politics, inflammatory rhetoric, and divisive role in British society”.
Kelly was speaking on her show about the latest episode of the reality TV series with former politician and show participant Edwina Currie about why Farage had signed up for the show.
Currie asked: “What’s he in for? I think he is in there because he thinks he can enhance his reputation and be seen as a responsible and intelligent and worthy person of some kind or other and perhaps, he’s only what, 59?
“He’s got plenty of years ahead of him.”
Lorraine was clearly surprised by Farage’s age, responding: “Oh, is he?
“Is he only 59? I thought he was a hell of a lot older than that. That’s astonishing.
“That shows you that you get the face you deserve.”
There were some people who saw the funny side of Lorraine’s comment, with one person thanking Lorraine for the comment and another calling it “savage”.
One of the best things I’ve ever heard @reallorraine say! On Nigel Farage .. “we get the face we deserve” 😂 Thank you for this little gem Lorraine… always telling it like it is 👍 @ITV #lorraine
— Alli Scott (@scottalli11) November 21, 2023
Others, meanwhile, called it “body shaming”.
Farage and Fred Sirieix clashed on Monday night’s episode after the First Dates host described a poster used by the Ukip party leader during the 2016 campaign as “shameful”.
As they discussed politics, French TV star Sirieix asked: “What’s the benefit of Brexit then? If you are an average person from Britain, what’s the benefit?”
Farage replied: “To know that we’re independent, we stand on our own two feet in the world.”
Recalling a poster which showed a long queue of migrants under the slogan Breaking Point, Sirieix added: “The thing is the intolerance that came because Brexit was about immigration, I remember your poster.
“I thought it was shameful what you did Nigel. Shameful.”
Sirieix added that he felt it was about “demonising migrants”, to which Farage replied: “In your view it was, but it wasn’t.”
