Michael Fabricant fumes Trisha Goddard has ‘agenda’ following heated ITV CBB Islamophobia row
Sir Michael Fabricant has shared his fury after a tense row with television presenter Trisha Goddard on Friday’s instalment of ITV Celebrity Big Brother.
The 74-year-old former MP accused Goddard, 67, of “stereotyping” him after they fell out over a speech he was challenged to make to keep the house’s electricity supply on.
Fabricant got himself into hot water with Goddard as he weighed in on the contentious immigration issue.
After discussing his French and Jewish roots, the MP said: “The point I’m making is Jewish people, when they usually come to this country, believe ‘do in Rome as the Romans do’.”
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“So not come to this country if your aim is to change everyone to your way of thinking,” the 74-year-old continued.
“Hang on, are you slipping into Islamophobia?” Goddard interrupted before adding his speech was “getting dangerous.”
Fabricant defended himself, saying: “No don’t misunderstand me. I’ve tried to explain this country has benefited from wave upon wave of immigration.”
Later in the diary room, the former MP expressed his frustration with Goddard’s interjection.
“She was stereotyping me as a Conservative MP,” he told Big Brother. “Then she suddenly jumped on to the subject of Islamophobia.”
He added: “I thought it was a bit simplistic for her to jump on to that and I didn’t like it.”
Fabricant insisted again he was talking generally about immigration, not specifically about Islam.
“Trisha was jumping to conclusions about what I was getting at,” he continued.
“Certainly people afterwards were saying to me, ‘how did she leap to that particular conclusion?'”
As the former MP suggested, other housemates did indeed lend their support to him after the row.
Chesney Hawkes told Fabricant: “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 also offered support, saying: “You didn’t say anything Islamophobic. You did good up there, well done.”
Despite the support, Fabricant later became the unlucky first housemate to be evicted – with Hollywood actor Mickey Rourke and Coronation Street star Jack P Shepherd narrowly surviving.
He had been nominated for eviction by Goddard, Rourke, Hughes. Angellica Bell, JoJo Siwa,, Patsy Palmer.
Upon his exit, he told hosts Will Best and AJ Odudu: “I’m very sad to say goodbye to all my friends. They were lovely people.”
However, the former MP saved some venom for Goddard – who he accused of harbouring an “agenda” against him.
“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,” he said.
Fabricant added: “I think only one person took it too seriously but anyway.”