Ofcom reveal the number of complaints they’ve had for Channel 4 mockumentary ‘Gregg Wallace: The Miracle Meat’

It was celebrated by The Guardian as one of the finest television hoaxes in recent years, but parts of the television viewing public were not amused by Channel 4 after the broadcast of “Gregg Wallace: The Miracle Meat” last week, leading to the possibility of Ofcom receiving a large number of complaints.

The mockumentary, in part inspired by “A Modest Proposal” by Jonathan Swift in 1792, dealt with a farm in Lincolnshire providing a “post-Brexit” answer to problems with supply chains by harvesting “human meat,” with one scene, in particular, troubling some viewers as the former Masterchef judge and Michelin star chef Michel Roux Jr. tucking into “human steaks.”

However, Ofcom’s weekly report into complaints received between Tuesday 18 July to Monday 24 July 2023 showed that the show only received 408 complaints; a sizeable amount still but nowhere near the number of complaints its “spiritual” predecessor, Brass Eye, received for their 2001 special.

It also ranks well below the number of complaints that ITV’s popular reality series “Love Island” received, which between Tuesday 4 July to Monday 10 July 2023 received a total of 1,047 complaints. That itself also paled in comparison to the 4,087 complaints the broadcaster received for its coverage of the Coronation of King Charles III.

Stuart Lee still reigns as king of the Ofcom complaints, with the BBC 2 screening of “Jerry Springer: The Opera” still the most complained broadcast to date, with 55,000 complaints made to Ofcom both ahead and on the day of its screening in January 2005. 

Can I still watch “Gregg Wallace: The Miracle Meat”?

Despite the complaints and moral outrage regarding the broadcast of the mockumentary, those curious about the show can still watch it by streaming it through All 4.