Here’s your daily dose of cringeworthy tv.
Love Island’s Curtis Pritchard recently had an unpleasant time on Good Morning Britain in which the interviewers badgered him about his sexuality.
‘I never want to label what the future is going to be because I don’t think anyone can really ever do that.’#LoveIsland's Curtis Pritchard addresses rumours about his sexuality. pic.twitter.com/RsAPJxo6sY
— Good Morning Britain (@GMB) August 8, 2019
What prompted this was the fact that Pritchard made headlines earlier this week for saying he “wouldn’t rule out” a gay romance.
During an interview with The Sun, Pritchard said: “I’ve been with women and I’m with a woman now. You can never put a label on anything. It’s a cliche to say, but love is blind. I can never ever say what will happen in the future. I wouldn’t rule anything out.”
Apparently, those simple words made major headlines in British media, and many sensationalized the statement. The personality tried to clear the air in an interview on talk show Lorraine, by restating that he’s in a relationship with a woman but can’t say he would never date a man. He simply states that he’s open to the possibility.
“Maura and I spoke last night because we saw it and basically, I’m happy with Maura,” he said.
“I’m happy with how things are going and we’ve both said the same thing, sort of. My head’s clear. Of course the future is unwritten because we don’t know what is going to happen. But I do see a future with Maura.”
“I do firmly believe love is love.”
But it’s the interview with the Good Morning Britain show that has internet users buzzing. The hosts of the show pressed Curtis Pritchard for comments on his earlier statement. And many Twitter users think they wanted him to come out or use a label on the air. To this, Pritchard replied:
“The future’s a road which is unwritten,” he said. “Nobody can ever say what’s going to happen in the future, really. Last year, would I have ever said I’d be on Love Island? No, and this year I was on Love Island.
“So, I never want to label what the future’s going to be, because I don’t think anyone can ever really do that. So, all I want to say is I’m 100% comfortable where I am now in my relationship with Maura [Higgins], and it is moving in the correct direction.”
Unfortunately, the conversation didn’t end there and the hosts insisted on asking if Pritchard was bisexual. He then reiterated again that he doesn’t “feel like [he] needs to label anything.”
“I’m not labelling anything, because I don’t feel like I need to label anything, because so many people put labels on things, so many people say things like this and that,” he said.
He then added, “I learnt this from the villa actually – ‘My head’s not going to be turned,’ and in the villa, two days is like two years in real life, their head gets turned, they change their mind, they change their opinion, things change.”
“So that’s why I’m not labelling anything, because I would be labelling, because I would be lying to anyone,” he concluded.
In response to the exchange and interview, several people have criticized the tv show and its hosts for pushing Pritchard. They say it’s shameful that the hosts tried to pressure Pritchard into using a label when he specifically stated he had no desire to.
https://twitter.com/MarilynThomson3/status/1159377346090196992?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1159377346090196992&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.queerty.com%2Fwatch-morning-hosts-try-guest-live-tv-cringing-interview-20190808
This was a toe curling, cringing interview and I would have thought @kategarraway and @adilray would have conducted theirselves more professionally. Shameful and totally unnecessary!
— Annie H 💙 (@LoulabelleH) August 8, 2019
https://twitter.com/Kags661/status/1159375397995331586?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1159375397995331586&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.queerty.com%2Fwatch-morning-hosts-try-guest-live-tv-cringing-interview-20190808
In response to these arguments, host Adil Ray says he asked the questions because it was a pressing topic among the media and because “it’s my job.”
Conversely, there are some who call Pritchard’s entire statement and stance as gaybait and attention seeking. And in the vein, it is strange that Curtis would decide to share the fact that he “wouldn’t rule out a same-sex relationship in the future,” as the Sun puts it, when being questioned about his new relationship with a woman.
That said, the argument of a person’s right to label themselves and not label themselves is an important issue. With so many media sources desperately reaching for a coming out headline, perhaps it’s better that Curtis keep as coy as possible. Otherwise, he’ll remain at the hands of reporters like those on Good Morning Britain.
