Beautiful Virgin Islands

Tuesday, Oct 21, 2025

‘Woke rubbish’: Hundreds complain to UK media watchdog over Channel 4’s deepfake Queen on Christmas Day

British broadcaster Channel 4 has been hit with hundreds of complaints over its Christmas Day message starring a ‘deepfake’ Queen, who danced on a table and joked about Prince Harry and Meghan Markle ditching the royal family.
British broadcaster Channel 4 has been hit with hundreds of complaints over its Christmas Day message starring a ‘deepfake’ Queen, who danced on a table and joked about Prince Harry and Meghan Markle ditching the royal family.

Ofcom said it had received at least 214 complaints over the broadcast of the digitally-altered monarch, which Channel 4 described as intended to provide a “stark warning” about the use of technology for “fake news in a digital age.”

The four-minute film starred English actress and impressionist Debra Stephenson, whose image was enhanced using ‘deepfake’ technology from Oscar-winning VFX studio Framestore, in order to generate an uncanny resemblance to Queen Elizabeth II.

In this alternative to the BBC’s official Christmas speech, the Queen also pokes fun at Boris Johnson’s sex life, her son Prince Andrew’s legal woes, and at one point even jumps up on her desk to perform a TikTok dance challenge. Channel 4’s head of programming said the clip served as a “powerful reminder that we can no longer trust our own eyes.”

But not everyone saw the funny side of trifling with Britain’s head of state, with some online commenters saying Channel 4 should show the monarch some “respect,” while others claimed the broadcast was “illegal” and even “treasonous.”

One Twitter user wrote: “I would rather go to the kitchen and hold my hands down on the hot plate for 10 minutes than watch this ‘woke’ rubbish.”

“How dare they,” was Brexit backer Nigel Farage’s response to the Channel 4 sketch, while a review by the Telegraph gave it just two out of five stars, describing it as “dismal” and “toothless satire.”

Amid the backlash, a Channel 4 spokesperson defended the skit, saying it was “affectionate and comedic in tone,” while carrying an important message. “It is very clear in the four-minute film that it is a parody of the Christmas Day address and viewers were left in no doubt that it was not real,” they added.

After the 214 complaints, Ofcom said it would consult the Broadcasting Code and decide whether to launch an investigation.

The number of complaints is relatively low compared to other UK television controversies in 2020, such as when the BBC used the N-word in a news item, drawing 18,600 complaints, or when ITV was hit with 1,900 objections after Britain’s Got Talent judge Alesha Dixon sported a BLM necklace on the show.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
This Is How the 'Heist of the Century' Was Carried Out at the Louvre in Seven Minutes: France Humiliated as Crown with 2,000 Diamonds Vanishes
China Warns UK of ‘Consequences’ After Delay to London Embassy Approval
France’s Wealthy Shift Billions to Luxembourg and Switzerland Amid Tax and Political Turmoil
"Sniper Position": Observation Post Targeting 'Air Force One' Found Before Trump’s Arrival in Florida
Shouting Match at the White House: 'Trump Cursed, Threw Maps, and Told Zelensky – "Putin Will Destroy You"'
Windows’ Own ‘Siri’ Has Arrived: You Can Now Talk to Your Computer
Thailand and Singapore Investigate Cambodian-Based Prince Group as U.S. and U.K. Sanctions Unfold
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
Chinese Tech Giants Halt Stablecoin Launches After Beijing’s Regulatory Intervention
Manhattan Jury Holds BNP Paribas Liable for Enabling Sudanese Government Abuses
Trump Orders Immediate Release of Former Congressman George Santos After Commuting Prison Sentence
S&P Downgrades France’s Credit Rating, Citing Soaring Debt and Political Instability
Ofcom Rules BBC’s Gaza Documentary ‘Materially Misleading’ Over Narrator’s Hamas Ties
Diane Keaton’s Cause of Death Revealed as Pneumonia, Family Confirms
Former Lostprophets Frontman Ian Watkins Stabbed to Death in British Prison
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
Outsider, Heroine, Trailblazer: Diane Keaton Was Always a Little Strange — and Forever One of a Kind
Dramatic Development in the Death of 'Mango' Founder: Billionaire's Son Suspected of Murder
Two Years of Darkness: The Harrowing Testimonies of Israeli Hostages Emerging From Gaza Captivity
EU Moves to Use Frozen Russian Assets to Buy U.S. Weapons for Ukraine
Europe Emerges as the Biggest Casualty in U.S.-China Rare Earth Rivalry
HSBC Confronts Strategic Crossroads as NAB Seeks Only Retail Arm in Australia Exit
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
Surging AI Startup Valuations Fuel Bubble Concerns Among Top Investors
Australian Punter Archie Wilson Tears Up During Nebraska Press Conference, Sparking Conversation on Male Vulnerability
Australia Confirms U.S. Access to Upgraded Submarine Shipyard Under AUKUS Deal
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
Brands Confront New Dilemma as Extremists Adopt Fashion Labels
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Erika Kirk Delivers Moving Tribute at White House as Trump Awards Charlie Presidential Medal of Freedom
British Food Influencer ‘Big John’ Detained in Australia After Visa Dispute
ScamBodia: The Chinese Fraud Empire Shielded by Cambodia’s Ruling Elite
French PM Suspends Macron’s Pension Reform Until After 2027 in Bid to Stabilize Government
Orange, Bouygues and Free Make €17 Billion Bid for Drahi’s Altice France Telecom Assets
Dutch Government Seizes Chipmaker After U.S. Presses for Removal of Chinese CEO
Bessent Accuses China of Dragging Down Global Economy Amid New Trade Curbs
U.S. Revokes Visas of Foreign Nationals Who ‘Celebrated’ Charlie Kirk’s Assassination
AI and Cybersecurity at Forefront as GITEX Global 2025 Kicks Off in Dubai
DJI Loses Appeal to Remove Pentagon’s ‘Chinese Military Company’ Label
EU Deploys New Biometric Entry/Exit System: What Non-EU Travelers Must Know
Australian Prime Minister’s Private Number Exposed Through AI Contact Scraper
×