Loose Women’s Denise Welch hit with Ofcom complaints after furious Meghan Markle row

Loose Women sparked outrage with viewers contacting broadcasting regulator Ofcom more than 100 times after Denise Welch spoke out about the Royal Family.

Loose Women: Coleen and Denise argue about Meghan Markle with Dick Arbiter

Loose Women has been hit with over 100 Ofcom complaints following a row between panellist Denise Welch and former press secretary Dickie Arbiter over his criticism of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry. On May 6 a total of 103 complaints were received.

The outrage followed a debate between Denise and Dickie where the former fiercely stood up for Meghan Markle during a live broadcast. The former press secretary had been on air discussing the monarch’s cancer battle.

When he turned his attention to the strained relationship between King Charles and Prince Harry, Denise jumped in to defend Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s decision to leave the Royal Family.

She had said: “If I may say, do you not think there is a reason why Harry did such a thing?” She then shared her views about everything the couple have been through and the scrutiny they have come under.

She said: “Then he has a wife who is completely and continually trashed by the media, including your good self.

Loose Women: Denise Welch received backlash (Image: ITV)

“I am just sick to death of the bashing that this woman gets (…) we continually berate this woman every day,” she concluded. Although she was cheered on by some audience members, the debate sparked a flurry of complaints.

Host Coleen Nolan tried to stop the situation from escalating, reminding Denise she hadn’t expected a “debate” to take place in the studio as Dickie told her she may have been reading “too many tabloids”, leading her to insist for him to not “disrespect her”.

However, Denise continued to rage as she added: “Don’t have a guest on (…) I can say what I like!”

Loose Women: Denise Welch defended Meghan Markle (Image: ITV)

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Denise’s comments sparked fury from viewers, as one said: “Good old Denise, surprised she can stay sober enough to be able to partake in a debate,” leading her to hit back on social media as she wrote: “12 yrs Dougie!! Keep up.”

She also responded to a fan who had compared her to Julian Clarey, after the fan misspelled Julian’s name.

Dickie had argued the Sussexes have received criticism over their choice to leave the Royal Family, while Denise believed it was an obvious decision to leave “a country that hated them”.

One fan said on X, formerly Twitter: “Good old Denise, surprised she can stay sober enough to be able to partake in a debate.”