A heated exchange on *ITV Celebrity Big Brother* sparked controversy this week, leading to the eviction of former Member of Parliament Sir Michael Fabricant. The dispute arose during a challenge where housemates were tasked with delivering speeches to restore electricity to the house.
Fabricant, 74, found himself at odds with television personality Trisha Goddard, 67, after discussing his own heritage and offering perspectives on immigration. In an attempt to illustrate his point about assimilation, he stated, “Jewish people, when they usually come to this country, believe ‘do in Rome as the Romans do.’”
He continued, “The point I’m making is… if your aim is to change everyone to your way of thinking, then why come here?”
Goddard immediately challenged his statement. “Hang on, are you slipping into Islamophobia?” she questioned, labeling his remarks as “getting dangerous.”
Fabricant swiftly defended himself, clarifying, “No, don’t misunderstand me. I’ve tried to explain this country has benefited from wave upon wave of immigration.”
Later, reflecting in the diary room, Fabricant expressed his disappointment with Goddard’s intervention. “She was stereotyping me as a Conservative MP,” he told *Big Brother*. “Then she suddenly jumped on to the subject of Islamophobia. I thought it was a bit simplistic for her to jump on that and I didn’t like it.”
He maintained that his comments were intended to address immigration generally, not specifically targeting any religious group. Fabricant lamented that Goddard seemed to prematurely conclude his meaning, a sentiment echoed by others in the house.
- Chesney Hawkes commented: “I don’t know why Trisha went into the Islamophobia thing. I thought that was a bit weird, because you weren’t talking about that.”
- Love Island star Chris Hughes added: “You didn’t say anything Islamophobic. You did good up there, well done.”
Despite this support, Fabricant became the first housemate to be evicted. He narrowly lost out to Hollywood actor Mickey Rourke and *Coronation Street* star Jack P Shepherd. He was nominated for eviction by Goddard, Rourke, Hughes, Angellica Bell, JoJo Siwa, and Patsy Palmer.
Upon leaving the house, Fabricant expressed his sadness at saying goodbye to his fellow housemates, stating, “I’m very sad to say goodbye to all my friends. They were lovely people.”
However, he reserved some criticism for Goddard, accusing her of pursuing a personal “agenda.” He concluded, “She misunderstands how politics is a broad thing and how you can be a left wing Tory and a right wing Labour guy. They overlap. I think only one person took it too seriously but anyway.”
