Big Brother episode pulled off ITVX after housemate wears 'controversial T-shirt'

Big Brother housemate Ali Bromley wore a t-shirt depicting watermelon imagery - a symbol of Palestine - and after that, the episode was removed from the ITV hub

An episode of Big Brother has been removed from the ITV hub after a housemate wore a t-shirt that left viewers divided.

Ali Bromley, a forensic psychologist, wore a t-shirt depicting a map of Palestine and Israel as a watermelon. While the reason for the episode being removed hasn't been confirmed by the broadcaster, ITV said on X, formerly called Twitter, that it had been pulled "due to compliance reasons."

However, in response to viewers asking when the episode would be available, ITV insisted it was being replaced and would be available again late on Wednesday night. The watermelon has long been a symbol of Palestine's resistance to occupation - and is used as a global sign of solidarity with Palestinians online.

Watermelon imagery is often used to communicate solidarity with the Palestinians thanks to the fruit's colours matching the Palestinian flag. After the Arab-Israeli war in 1967, it became illegal to publicly display the Palestinian flag in Israel. The ban was lifted with the 1993 Oslo Accords, but last year, Israel's new National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir ordered the removal of Palestinian flags from public spaces.

Ali, who describes herself as a "late-in-life lesbian", has previously worn a t-shirt showing solidarity with the transgender community, which read: "Trans rights are human rights." After Ali wore the watermelon t-shirt on the reality show, some people criticised her and ITV for allowing it, while others praised her for showing solidarity with Palestine.

The Campaign Against Antisemitism said the graphic on the t-shirt "caused significant distress among the British Jewish community" and said they had submitted a complaint to Ofcom. They added: "How did the show's staff allow this shirt to be worn, let alone broadcast it on national television? This incident represents a serious violation of broadcasting standards."

However, several viewers praised Ali as one said: "Ali should be applauded for these t-shirts btw, first a trans rights are human rights shirt and a Palestine one. Honestly queen s**t right there." Another praised Ali, saying: "I love how she's brought in both pro-Palestine and pro-trans shirts, I just love this woman actually." One more said: "Ali wearing a Palestine-shaped watermelon tee. They could never make me hate her."

There has also been speculation online on the reason why the episode has been removed, with a viewer tweeting: "I hope this has nothing to do with Ali's pro Palestine t shirt. Big Brother is a social experiment, all walks of life with different views and opinions (Ali happens to have very good ones). Don't go down this road."

One more person wrote on the social media platform: "Shame on @ITV if this is about Ali's Palestine t-shirt. There is literally a Palestinian refugee in the house who has talked about his struggles and you wanna edit out a watermelon. After an audience member had their Palestine flag ripped off them too, this is disgusting."

ITV hasn't confirmed the exact reason why the show was removed, before being re-edited and re-uploaded, and simply mentioned "compliance reasons". However, in response to a viewer who asked where the episode had gone, ITV insisted it would be available again a few hours later.

The broadcaster tweeted: "Thank you for reaching out to us today. Hope you are well. Regarding your question about last night's Big Brother show, we have some news, it will be available to view later this evening. We apologise for the inconvenience caused by this but the wait will be worth it."

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