Jamie Borthwick's EastEnders job ‘at risk' over disabled slur scandal
The actor - who has played Jay Brown for 19 years on the BBC soap - was suspended by bosses after he was filmed using a sickening slur while backstage at Strictly Come Dancing.
2
2
He issued a grovelling apology to The Sun on Sunday but now sources say it may not be enough to bring the matter to a close.
While Jamie's suspension isn't believed to have had a drastic effect on filming schedules or re-writes, it has put a question mark in the industry over his job at the soap.
A source said: 'Jamie is well thought of but Jay hasn't played a central role in the show for a while.
'The character hasn't had a major storyline recently - he's been very much a supporting character of late.
'Meanwhile Jamie has been kept busy outside of EastEnders by being given the Strictly Christmas special in 2023 and then the full series last year.
'But consquently on EastEnders he's barely been seen with about 30 appearances on screen since last summer.
'And with a new boss in Ben Wadey who only recently took the helm and with the scandal taking place so soon into his tenure feeling is that Jamie's place on the show could be at serious risk.'
Jamie sent shockwaves behind the scenes at the BBC soap's Elstree-based set last weekend when The Sun On Sunday revealed a video had emerged of him on the set of the dance show last year.
In it, he was seen using the term 'm********s' to describe the people of Blackpool, the seaside town where the show was being filmed for its annual special.
Jamie made the shameful remark while the Strictly cast were at the Blackpool Tower Ballroom last November.
Strictly's Jamie Borthwick cheated on me during the show and then used co-star to try and smooth it over, ex tells pals
The footage - which was sent to a pal - shows him backstage during rehearsals alongside co-star Wynne Evans, who was recently sacked by the BBC.
The pair were excited to learn they had been selected for the Strictly tour, which toured the country earlier this year.
Jamie is then seen laughing, before saying: 'Blackpool by the way. Absolute m********s.'
The BBC suspended him from the soap while they investigate the matter.
They said in a statement: 'This language is entirely unacceptable and in no way reflects the values or standards we hold and expect at the BBC. We have robust processes in place for this.'
Jamie apologised saying: 'I want to apologise sincerely and wholeheartedly for the words I used in the video showing my reaction to making it through Blackpool week on Strictly.
'I am deeply sorry for any offence and upset my words and actions have caused.
'It is no excuse, but I did not fully understand the derogatory term I used and its meaning. That is on me completely.
'Now I am aware, I am deeply embarrassed to have used the term and directed it in the way I did. It was wrong.
'When I made the video, I was excited and caught up in the moment. Again, that is no excuse. But my regrettable actions are not a true reflection of my views, or who I am.
'I enjoyed every minute of my time in the Blackpool Tower Ballroom and the town itself. The people of Blackpool have always been amazing with the Strictly crew, dancers and cast members.
Strictly Curse - The Lowdown
STRICTLY Come Dancing's latest series has already been hit by rumours of a BBC show 'curse' - yet what is it?
A host of Strictly Come Dancing stars have been struck by the Strictly Curse during the past two decades.
This is where celebrities who may or may not be attached in the outside world become more than friends with their professional partners.
A total of 20 relationships are said to have been impacted so far over the show's 20 years.
It has seen relationships crumble with dance floor romances and punishing rehearsal schedules to blame.
This includes the partnerships of Louise and Jamie Redknapp as well as Kevin Clifton and Karen Hauer.
Controversially, Judge Craig Revel Horwood once said of the curse: 'I think of it as a blessing, to be honest. One person is married, the other one had a girlfriend but my point in this entire thing is: if you come on Strictly, sometimes you are in a relationship that is not working anyway.
'There has to be something wrong in your relationship before it all goes awry.'
Series one winner Brendan Cole left his fiancé, fellow Strictly professional Camilla Dallerup, during filming for the very first series in spring 2004.
Brendan was said to have fallen for his celebrity partner and inaugural winner Natasha Kaplinsky, although the duo didn't confirm they were romantically involved.
'I know they will be again for this year's show and those in years to come. I am truly sorry.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South Wales Guardian
an hour ago
- South Wales Guardian
Trinny Woodall: There was nothing I could have done about ex-husband's suicide
On Fearne Cotton's Happy Place podcast, the 61-year-old reflected on the former drummer and businessman's death in 2014, and praised the work of charities looking into mental health and suicide. Asked about her regrets by Cotton, Woodall said: 'I think going back to earlier, it's that would've, should've, could've – so do I regret that I didn't do more for my ex-husband to stop him killing himself? No, because it was nothing I could have done. 'So to ponder on the regret of somebody who kills himself, it can take you into the darkest hole, but you can also know when somebody who is in that situation switches off, and that is their path and nobody can get in. 'I had to learn.' Woodall said there are 'fabulous charities' working in the area of mental health and suicide – which she said is the biggest cause of death in men under 50. She went on to speak about how she guided daughter Lyla, who was 11 at the time, through Elichaoff's death. She explained: 'When I heard about Lyla's dad, Lyla was at school and my first challenge was how can I even tell her, how can I say the words to tell her. 'My sister was a friend of a woman called Julia Samuel, who wrote an amazing book, Grief Works, and she's fantastic. 'Julia came around to our house and I just said, 'I need some words', and so she said, 'you're going to tell her he had a heart attack in his head'.'We told her (Lyla) and she screamed really loudly and it was like an animal scream, and then 20 minutes later she's downstairs getting a snack, so children's absorption of what has happened is that there's that gut, she really loved her dad. 'This thing is just, she can't quite understand it, but she knows that he's not coming back in some daily way and then we had a cremation so then there's a real awareness. 'There's a lot of people saying, 'I'm so sorry about your dad, Lyla', so she's manic a little, she was running around with her friends and then there was a memorial only 10 days after that, and there were 1,200 people in the church. 'Lyla got up and read If, but she didn't read it, she said it with nothing and didn't cry and it wasn't that she was being strong.' The beauty entrepreneur was also asked if she regrets taking drugs for a decade. She added: 'I actually don't, because it gave me such a depth of having to deal with life at an early age, some testing things that it rounded me up more as a person. 'When I got into my 30s, I had a lot of experience to draw on to be resilient, so thereby I don't regret that it happened and I should draw upon it.' Best known for hosting BBC fashion show What Not To Wear with Susannah Constantine, Woodall is also the founder of cosmetics brand Trinny London. The full interview can be heard on the Happy Place podcast available on Apple Podcasts, YouTube and Spotify. In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted for free at 116 123, or on email at jo@ or jo@
Leader Live
an hour ago
- Leader Live
Trinny Woodall: There was nothing I could have done about ex-husband's suicide
On Fearne Cotton's Happy Place podcast, the 61-year-old reflected on the former drummer and businessman's death in 2014, and praised the work of charities looking into mental health and suicide. Asked about her regrets by Cotton, Woodall said: 'I think going back to earlier, it's that would've, should've, could've – so do I regret that I didn't do more for my ex-husband to stop him killing himself? No, because it was nothing I could have done. 'So to ponder on the regret of somebody who kills himself, it can take you into the darkest hole, but you can also know when somebody who is in that situation switches off, and that is their path and nobody can get in. 'I had to learn.' Woodall said there are 'fabulous charities' working in the area of mental health and suicide – which she said is the biggest cause of death in men under 50. She went on to speak about how she guided daughter Lyla, who was 11 at the time, through Elichaoff's death. She explained: 'When I heard about Lyla's dad, Lyla was at school and my first challenge was how can I even tell her, how can I say the words to tell her. 'My sister was a friend of a woman called Julia Samuel, who wrote an amazing book, Grief Works, and she's fantastic. 'Julia came around to our house and I just said, 'I need some words', and so she said, 'you're going to tell her he had a heart attack in his head'.'We told her (Lyla) and she screamed really loudly and it was like an animal scream, and then 20 minutes later she's downstairs getting a snack, so children's absorption of what has happened is that there's that gut, she really loved her dad. 'This thing is just, she can't quite understand it, but she knows that he's not coming back in some daily way and then we had a cremation so then there's a real awareness. 'There's a lot of people saying, 'I'm so sorry about your dad, Lyla', so she's manic a little, she was running around with her friends and then there was a memorial only 10 days after that, and there were 1,200 people in the church. 'Lyla got up and read If, but she didn't read it, she said it with nothing and didn't cry and it wasn't that she was being strong.' The beauty entrepreneur was also asked if she regrets taking drugs for a decade. She added: 'I actually don't, because it gave me such a depth of having to deal with life at an early age, some testing things that it rounded me up more as a person. 'When I got into my 30s, I had a lot of experience to draw on to be resilient, so thereby I don't regret that it happened and I should draw upon it.' Best known for hosting BBC fashion show What Not To Wear with Susannah Constantine, Woodall is also the founder of cosmetics brand Trinny London. The full interview can be heard on the Happy Place podcast available on Apple Podcasts, YouTube and Spotify. In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted for free at 116 123, or on email at jo@ or jo@
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
'Don't let me turn into someone who doesn't recognise the people I love most', says Dame Joanna Lumley as she speaks out in favour of assisted dying
Dame Joanna Lumley has spoken out in support of the controversial assisted dying policy, saying she would not want to carry on if she couldn't recognize her loved ones. The actress, 79, said she supported the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, which would allow adults with less than six months to live to apply for assisted death. The bill passed a vote in the House of Commons last month, despite objections from Labour ministers and Health Secretary Wes Streeting, and will be discussed in the House of Lords in the autumn. Dame Joanna, known for starring as Patsy in the BBC comedy Absolutely Fabulous. was asked about the bill in an interview with Saga Magazine. She said: 'People are terribly anxious about it and think you may be coerced. 'But I'm saying this now, when nobody's coercing me - don't let me turn into somebody who doesn't recognize the people I love most, where I'm having a miserable time. 'When I get to that stage, when my mind is gone and I have to be fed, that won't be me any more - and I wouldn't mind saying "farewell".' TV presenter Dame Esther Rantzen has been another vocal supporter of the bill and recently urged the Lords not to block the legislation. Dame Esther, 85, has terminal cancer and is being backed by her daughter Rebecca Wilcox. The support from Dame Joanna has been welcomed by campaigner Louise Shackleton. Mrs Shackleton, 58, is currently being investigated for taking her terminally ill husband Anthony, 59, to Switzerland last December to assist his suicide, after he had suffered from motor neurone disease for six years. She told The Mirror that she is set to bury his ashes today on what would have been his 60th birthday She added: 'He would have been overwhelmed that such a huge star has spoken out. 'I would like to thank Joana on behalf of fellow campaigners for having the courage to speak out and to represent the vast majority of people who are in agreement with what she is saying but haven't got her platform. 'Hopefully there will be measured, educated and community focused progress to move this forward.' The bill did have opponents from all parties including Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick. Writing for the Daily Mail, he revealed how he helped look after his grandmother, Dorothy, as a teenage boy – and how she continued to bring joy to the family as she defied a terminal diagnosis for nearly a decade. He said the prospect of legalising assisted dying 'fills me with dread', adding: 'My Nana felt like she was a burden. I know how much she hated the indignity she felt at having to ask my Mum or us to help her with basic needs. 'People like her – and there are many such people – may consider an assisted death as another act of kindness to us. How wrong they would be. 'Our society pays little regard to end of life care. We need to do much more as a country to help the elderly, like my Nana, in their final years. 'But my experience has taught me that there can be dignity in death, and that even in someone's twilight years, there is joy to be extracted from life. 'So I'll be voting No. And as I do so, I'll be thinking of my great pal – my Nana, Dorothy.' Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch urged her MPs to vote against the legislation, describing it as 'a bad Bill' despite being 'previously supportive of assisted suicide'. Mother of the House Diane Abbott also asked MPs to vote against the bill, saying: 'There is no doubt that if this Bill is passed in its current form, people will lose their lives who do not need to, and they will be amongst the most vulnerable and marginalised in our society.'
