ITV is under pressure to kick Rufus Hound off Dancing on Ice for claiming Theresa May planned the Manchester Arena terror attack to help Tories win the election
- Rufus Hound retweeted claims Theresa May planned Manchester terror attack
- Comedian, 41, shared tweet stating the timing of bombing ‘fortunate’ for May
- He later said he was not alleging it as true but government not ‘incapable of evil’
- Tory MP Alec Shelbrooke said it is ITV’s ‘moral’ obligation to sack him from show
Dancing on Ice bosses are facing calls to remove Rufus Hound from the show after he tweeted claims that Theresa May planned the Manchester Arena terror attack.
The comedian, 41, who is currently off the show for ten days isolating after a ping from the Covid test and trace app, has stirred outrage among MPs and Bomb victims for retweeting the unsubstantiated claims.
Mr Hound retweeted: ‘Given the attacker was known to MI5, the timing seems fortunate for May that an attack ‘slips through’ as Labour are making progress.’
He then added his own comment, suggesting that May, the Prime Minister at the time of the 2017 Manchester Arena bombings, had planned the attack to help the Tories win the election, The Sun on Sunday reports.
Dancing on Ice bosses are facing calls to remove Rufus Hound from the show (pictured)
The conspiracy theorist wrote: ‘Apologies for mild tinhattedness, but I’ve been thinking the same. Esp. as she was Home Secretary for so long.’
He later tweeted that he was not suggesting it was true, but that he believed it could be possible, adding: ‘I guess I’m not really alleging it as true, more that I don’t believe our establishment is incapable of such evil. Especially during an election.’
MP Rob Halfon told The Sun on Sunday: ‘This is horrific.’These trivial remarks are deeply offensive to victims of the Manchester attack.’
Whilst another Conservative MP Alec Shelbrooke told the publication that it was ITV’s ‘moral responsibility’ to ‘chuck out’ contestants using the show as a political platform.
Jade Clough, 33, from Stockport, who was hit by shrapnel at the Manchester attack carried out by Salman Abedi, told The Sun on Sunday that the claims were ‘outrageous’ and said the celebrity’s actions could make people feel it was ok to share similar unsubstantiated claims.
A scene following the Manchester Arena attack at an Ariana Grande concert
ITV declined to comment on the matter, MailOnline has contacted Hound’s representatives for comment.
It comes after the former Celebrity Juice star caused a stir during last week’s show by criticising the UK Government over free school meals.
Mr Hound took aim at the government’s stance on free school meals and said his video game-inspired performance was the ‘least mad thing that has happened in a long time.’
He said: ‘I’ve spent most of this year not being emotionally stable because the world stopped making sense and this does not make more sense of it.
In a series of tweets made in 2017 Mr Hound shared his view that the government were not ‘incapable of such evil’
‘We live in a world where the people we elect don’t want to feed hungry children, this is the least mad thing that has happened to me in a long time.’
Ofcom has since received 341 complaints about last weekend’s episode, with the majority made about Mr Hound.This week the comedian has had to pull out of the show in accordance with government guidelines, which state that he now has to quarantine at home for 10 days.
Mr Hound was set to perform in a group routine on Sunday night and again the following week for his individual skate, but he will now be forced to miss both.
Sources say Mr Hound has tested negative for the coronavirus and is now isolating at home. Mr Hound pictured with Robin Johnstone
A spokesperson for ITV told MailOnline: ‘This week Rufus Hound came into contact with someone outside of the show who tested positive for Covid 19.
This means, following government guidelines, he will isolate for ten days. We are hoping to welcome him back to the ice soon.’
‘We continue to have a robust set of measures in place to operate safely within Covid-19 guidelines and to ensure the wellbeing of everyone connected with the production.’
Sources say he has tested negative for the coronavirus and is now isolating at home.
They added that while Rufus will have to isolate, his professional partner Robin Johnstone will not as she hasn’t come into contact with anyone covid positive.
She will not appear on Sunday evening’s show however.
It is currently unclear whether the skating duo will return to the show once his isolation period ends.