The BBC has firmly denied that James Acaster complained about the behavior of fellow comedians, Rob Beckett and Romesh Ranganathan, during The Celebrity Traitors.
The Mail on Sunday reported over the weekend that Acaster, who starred in Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, raised his concerns with producers at Studio Lambert after he became “uncomfortable” with the “macho banter” of Beckett and Ranganathan.
In a story splashed on the front page of the Mail on Sunday, the newspaper quoted a “snitch” on the show as saying: “Rob and Romesh clearly thought they were having a bit of a laugh, but James began to feel quite a lot of it was at his expense, and away from the cameras he started to get annoyed and upset by it. In the end, he spoke to the production team about it, saying he was unhappy and felt like he was being singled out.”
The BBC has since issued a forceful denial. A spokesperson said: “Claims of teasing amongst the cast on the show and claims of complaints about teasing are categorically untrue. There were no incidents of this nature and there is no evidence to support these allegations.”
The Celebrity Traitors has become the subject of intense press speculation after dominating television ratings in the UK. The series is averaging nearly 9.3 million live viewers, which is almost unheard of outside of sport and major national events.