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Joel Dommett has apologised for joking about ‘shanking’ someone on an I’m A Celebrity spin-off show – as campaigners condemned him for ‘trivialising’ knife crime.
The 40-year-old used the term, a slang term for stabbing, on Tuesday’s episode of ITV2‘s I’m A Celebrity Unpacked.
Joel, his co-presenter Kemi Rodgers, and guests Ant and Dec were discussing the celebrities winning bags of sweets – with campmate Ruby Wax keeping a bag of Liquorice Allsorts to herself.
To laughter, the comedian said: ‘If someone stole my Haribo, I’d shank them’, before following up with: ‘Is that alright to say on telly? Is that too much?’
Dec answered: ‘It was a little too much, you’ve overstepped the mark’, with Joel saying ‘I’m sorry about that.’
Among those criticising the remark was Martin Cosser, whose son Charlie, 17, was murdered in a knife attack. He said the joke was ‘reckless’.
Joe said in a statement issued after the show aired: ‘I would like to once again apologise to anyone offended by the language used in Tuesday’s show.
‘I realised the error in the moment and immediately apologised live on air.
‘This was not a pre-written joke and I would never make light of such a serious issue as knife crime.’
An ITV spokesman added: ‘We would apologise to anyone offended by the language used in Tuesday’s show.
‘Joel recognised this unfortunate choice of language in the moment and immediately apologised to viewers.’
Patrick Green, CEO of The Ben Kinsella Trust, a charity educating young people on the dangers of knife crime, urged Joel to be more careful in the future.
‘I am sure that when Joel made this comment, he was not intending to cause offence or trivialise knife crime, as indicated by his immediate apology,’ he said.
‘However, it does highlight how knife crime has become so ingrained in our society that it has entered everyday language, when in reality it is something we should strongly oppose and never joke about.
‘Knife crime is not a trivial matter—it takes young lives and leaves families and communities devastated.
‘It is important that we continue to challenge this normalisation and ensure that the seriousness of the issue is never undermined.’
Martin Cosser, who lost his son, Charlie, in 2023 when he was stabbed at a party, insisted knife crime was not a laughing matter.
‘Charlie died by losing every milligram of blood in his body – a ruptured bowel, ruptured spleen, he’d been stabbed in the heart,’ he told The Sun.
‘He had two traumatic cardiac arrests and died of irreversible brain damage.
‘There’s nothing to joke about with knife crime. There really isn’t.’
It comes as viewers delivered their verdict on the Unpacked show, which airs each night after I’m A Celeb.
Although featuring exclusive content and guests including past winners Jill Scott and Sam Thompson, it has not managed to hook the same viewership as the main show.
One fan wrote on X: ‘That I’m A Celeb unpacked needs to be cancelled.’
A second added: ‘Am I the only one who thinks Unpacked is just dead… none of them have any enthusiasm.. So monotone. I wanna watch but it’s hard to watch.’
A third viewer complained of being bored by the show, writing: ‘I’ve tried to watch, but quickly lose interest.’
The latest Unpacked series has also featured guests including past campmates Alison Hammond, Seann Walsh and Melvin Odoom.
I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! continues Monday at 9pm on ITV1 and is available to stream on ITVX.
