Former Big Brother housemate George Gilbert has addressed his exit from the house, revealing the comments he made that led to bosses giving him the boot.
The 23-year-old parish councillor was one of four late entrants to the current ITV series, and he rubbed viewers up the wrong way on several occasions with his political debates.
Things came to a head, however, when George was told that his ‘offensive language’ warranted his removal, having been called to the Diary Room first thing in the morning one day last week and informed of the consequences of his actions.
Viewers were left to wonder what exactly happened, as ITV did not air his comments because they would breach Ofcom broadcasting standards. Reports emerged, though, with sources claiming he had been antisemitic.
Tonight, the ex-reality star took to YouTube with a lengthy video in which he detailed the remarks he used.
George, who had already received multiple verbal warnings for his controversial comments, says he was discussing ‘conspiracy theories’ with his fellow housemates.
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The discussion got him ‘fired up’, as he was quizzed for his stance on the moon landing and the building of the pyramids.
George went on to say: ‘I think it’s terrible that antisemitism is on the rise in London; we need to stamp it out.
‘My heart goes out to all the Jews who are innocently discriminated against. Certainly, in this country, we’re more equality-driven than any other country, some may say. It’s heartbreaking that people are living in fear.’
Acknowledging that he perhaps ‘should’ve been more sensible’ and ‘careful’ with his tone, he explained that he told the other housemates, whom he did not name: ‘I do understand why people are sceptical about some Jewish conspiracy at the top of the pecking order because some of the finest minds in human history (giving Shakespeare and Roald Dahl as examples)… some of the most intellectual men, they all had antisemitic tropes in their writings.
‘Is it a case of no smoke without fire, I wonder?’
‘That is why I was kicked out. Asking a question,’ George says.
‘Last time I checked, this is a democracy. You are allowed to ask questions, because that’s freedom of speech. But no.’
He added that he ‘talked with the producers for a long time’ after being told he would be removed from the house.
‘I see why asking, “Is it a case of no smoke without fire?” could be provocative unnecessarily.
‘But I’m just asking a question because I wanted to know why antisemitism has lasted for centuries. Then I can fight the right battle.’
He continued: ‘I was also told that because none of my housemates were giving me a counterargument to make it balanced, it looked like I was preaching. I wasn’t. If my housemates were more clued up on these topics, I’d still be in there.’
George, from Essex, further claimed that his life is now ‘ruined’, fearing he will be unable to find work (he has appeared in multiple hit TV shows as an extra, like Heartstopper) due to being known for his Big Brother scandal.
He also recalled the moment he met with producers and the welfare team after his immediate exit, saying he ‘broke down like a baby’ on the phone to his mother.
Elsewhere in his video, George exposed other comments he made for which he received warnings. Not all of these made the edit; again, they did not comply with broadcasting standards.
George says it didn’t take long for him to be told off, as he received a warning on night one after a discussion about Hitler, for which he was ‘distraught’ as he questioned how he would be able to ‘last’ in the house.
‘I don’t believe anybody is intrinsically good or evil,’ he said, using Hitler as an example.
‘He did the things he did because he would’ve been fed a pack of lies about Jewish people,’ George added, saying he felt the Nazi leader was ‘misguided’.
Stating that he does ‘not endorse’ the Holocaust, George, who likes ‘touching boundaries’, says this conversation led to his first verbal warning.
Then, on night three, he was given a formal warning for saying that, as a ginger person, he would feel ‘obligated to procreate with someone who can pass on the red hair gene’.
‘If I was to go have a baby with a Black woman, I feel like I’d be betraying my kind,’ he said.
‘Sorry if that offends you, but I’d love to know if it does,’ he told viewers of his YouTube video.
A comment of George’s deserving of a warning that did air on TV was his mimicking of fellow housemate Sam, who is gay.
After being ‘dared’ to dish out his feelings towards the people he was living with, George said Sam ‘could be less [proceeds to make hand gestures]’.
Sam later broke down in tears over the incident, saying it took him back to his school days, where he was bullied for being flamboyant.
Some other moments that led to viewers slamming George and his beliefs included him suggesting that homeless people should take responsibility for their own financial situations and comparing a lesbian kiss in the animated Buzz Lightyear film to ‘pornography’.
ITV is yet to respond to his new post, but, when contacted by Metro, reiterated their original press statement from a Big Brother spokesperson: ‘Following repeated use of unacceptable language and behaviour, George has been removed from the Big Brother house with immediate effect and will no longer participate in the programme.’
The Sun previously reported that ‘everyone was absolutely disgusted’ by what George said that led to him being kicked out.
‘Nobody could believe what he said—he was clearly out to shock people,’ the tabloid’s source revealed.
ITV has been contacted for comment.
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