Ofcom receives hundreds of complaints over Rufus Hound’s Dancing On Ice comments

Ofcom has received 341 complaints about last weekend’s episode of Dancing On Ice, with the majority made about celebrity contestant Rufus Hound.

Sunday saw the judges put the comedian, 41, and his partner Robin Johnstone straight through to week three of the competition by giving the pair a golden ticket after voting their performance the strongest.

Hound then took aim at the Government’s stance on free school meals.

.@RufusHound's reaction to winning the first Golden Ticket of the series was everything 💖😭 @IceJohnstone #DancingOnIce pic.twitter.com/RFH9uaCRgV

— Dancing on Ice (@dancingonice) January 18, 2021

He said: “I’ve spent most of this year not being emotionally stable because the world stopped making sense and this does not make more sense of it. Thank you, I don’t know what is happening.

“We live in a world where the people we elect don’t want to feed hungry children, this is the least mad thing that has happened to me in a long time.”

Following pressure from a campaign headed by England footballer Marcus Rashford last year, the Government reversed its decision not to extend the children’s food voucher scheme into the summer holidays.

Cabinet minister Grant Shapps said in June that free school meals were not normally extended to cover the summer period, but a few hours later, No 10 backtracked, confirming that it would extend the programme.

And earlier this month there was public outcry when images of boxes for children containing £4 or £5 worth of food intended to last a week were shared online.

Ofcom said the other complaints were about co-host Holly Willoughby’s dress and the set up of the programme in relation to coronavirus restrictions.

Watch: Here are all the best moments from the first episode of Dancing On Ice 2021