Eamonn Holmes criticises Celebrity Gogglebox for 'editing' heart attack scene
"I am hurt beyond belief."
This Morning presenter Eamonn Holmes has criticised Celebrity Gogglebox after the show returned to Channel 4 last night (Friday 5th June).
One part of the premiere focused on BBC One show, Ambulance, in which the celebrity line-up were shown a clip of a 10-year-old boy who had to resuscitate his own father following a heart attack.
The heart-wrenching scene thankfully had a happy ending as the youngster successfully saved his dad.
Following the scene, Celebrity Gogglebox guests Holmes and his wife Ruth Langsford reminisced a time the latter was in labour.
Holmes took to Twitter to comment on the edit, explaining how he had actually recounted his father's death, which had similarities to the scene on Ambulance, but claimed Gogglebox had removed this emotional story.
He told his one million followers: "In reply to a number of complaints .... I am hurt beyond belief that @C4Gogglebox chose not to use me talking about my Father dying from a Heart Attack at the side of a road and replace it with a funny story following a young lad giving his Father CPR . Idiotic and cruel edit.
"So following a tragedy that has forever haunted my family, I am in no mood for criticising holier than thou mouthpieces on here who haven't gone through what we did. I had nothing but praise and emotion for the Ambulance control room TV programme. An atrocious edit @StudioLambert."
Holmes added: "How my Father died was a particularly horrible experience for my Mother , my younger brother and his friend who were all in the car. The resuscitation in The BBC Ambulance programme was as close as could be to my Dad's passing.Yet I am the one edited to make it look like a laugh."
The This Morning regular received messages of support from his fans, before he added: "Thank you everyone for seeing what happened tonight. Just awful that it did and that I have had to explain. Anyone who works in The Ambulance Service or who has experienced the impact of Sudden Death will understand. I now need to put my phone down. Goodnight."
A Gogglebox spokesperson told RadioTimes.com: “We have apologised to Eamonn over what happened in this week’s episode. We understand and respect Eamonn’s feelings on such a deeply personal story. We have taken the decision to edit the episode for future repeats and All 4. We look forward to working with Eamonn and Ruth for the rest of the series.”
Celebrity Gogglebox airs Fridays at 9pm on Channel 4. If you're looking for more to watch, check out our TV Guide.
Authors
Helen Daly is the Associate Editor for Radio Times, overseeing new initiatives and commercial projects for the brand. She was previously Deputy TV Editor at a national publication. She has a BA in English Literature and an MA in Media & Journalism from Newcastle University.
