Miracle Meat; Gregg Wallace continues the tradition of the great British parody, but viewers are not amused

It’s become a meme on social media, scenes of former Masterchef judge Gregg Wallace tucking into “miracle meat,” harvested from humans. But ultimately, the concept and the show itself, “The British Miracle Meat,” was all just one big hoax, as The Guardian confirmed - going as far as to call it “one of the best TV hoaxes in history.”

The show, which aired on Channel 4 on Monday evening, took viewers insider Lincolnshire’s Good Harvest HQ to discover how they harvest this “miracle meat,” with Wallace tucking into a “human meat” steak and employee Mick even going as far as to say eating human was a benefit of Brexit. “Thankfully now we’re out we can harvest people and pay them for their flesh,” he explains.

One scene in particular had viewers incredibly distressed with Gregg alongside Michelin chef pal Michel Roux Jr tucked into human steaks to sample the meat. The two chefs sat at the table and then try to guess what kind of person the meat could have come from. But alas, it was all a very well-orchestrated stunt and by the end credits, viewers were informed of the work of fiction, but also to lend their support to The Trussell Trust.

The theme of the show itself is based on an 18th-century work by Jonathan Smith, titled “A Modest Proposal?” which jokingly suggested that the poor Irish should sell their children as food to solve their poverty, with his satirical argument being that wealthy landowners "devoured" the Irish with their cruelty, so Swift suggests they do so literally.

However, much like hoaxes on television in the past, some viewers did not find any amusement in the production, taking to social media to complain about what they (voluntarily) watched Monday evening and going as far as to believe “The British Miracle Meat” would be the most complained about show to Ofcom in history. 

It would need to eclipse 3,000 complaints to beat out the show’s “spiritual” predecessor, Chris Morris’ controversial final episode of “Brass Eye” in 2001, and even more for the BBC’s legendary “Ghostwatch” program that aired Halloween Eve in 1992, which at that stage elicited 30,000 complaints from distraught and angry viewers.

Still reigning champion of Ofcom complaints, however, is the airing of “Jerry Springer: The Opera” on BBC Two on January 8 2005, which not only received 55,000 complaints but led to picketing outside of BBC Broadcasting House due to the “themes” Stuart Lee’s musical had and its “blasphemous” overtones.