Editorial: Ofcom was right not to censure 'terribly white' comment, which was merely stupid

The watchdog Ofcom has said that it will not be taking action against ITV for an actress saying that the balcony at Buckingham Palace was "terribly white" during the coronation celebrations. The actress, Adjoa Andoh, was speaking during a discussion that formed part of ITV's coverage of the event. Ofcom, which received 8,000 complaints about the remark, acknowledged that “some viewers had strong feelings about this comment" but concluded that the remark “was a personal observation which was part of a wide-ranging panel discussion".

This is a sensible ruling from Ofcom. Indeed had it reached any other verdict it would have been a worrying example of intrusion into freedom of expression on the feeble grounds that people have been upset. But while Ms Andoh's comment was not worthy of sanction, it was a stupid remark. The monarchy is a system of hereditary head of state. Necessarily therefore, the incumbent on the throne and his or her heirs will all be related. To observe that they are all of the same race is an absurdity. Families around the world are typically made up of people of the same region and race.

There are of course many exceptions to that, including in the royal family itself, where Prince Harry married a woman, Meghan Markle, who describes herself as of mixed race, and whose mother is African American. The Duchess of Sussex, as she became, was met with outpouring of public love and affection when she became a royal. But in the absence of such unions, inevitably the royal family is overwhelmingly caucasian. Almost 90% of the population in the UK is the same. As recently as 1951 it was 99%.

The UK is a modern, multi cultural society, as reflected in the coronation service. But individual families cannot be ordered to be diverse or expected to become so, except over generations.