Channel 4’s controversial Bonnie Blue documentary has sparked outrage from major brands, resulting in adverts being pulled.
Bonnie Blue: 1000 Men and Me documented the OnlyFans creator’s bid to have sex with 1000 men in 12 hours, investigating whether it was ’empowering’ or ‘pandering’.
The stunt saw her sleep with 1057 men, with the hour-long documentary quickly slammed as ‘disgraceful’ and ‘disturbing’ by viewers.
Now, brands like Smirnoff, VISA and Cawston Press have removed their adverts both online and in the app during the programme.
The Times reported that multiple brands requested this removal as they did not feel the documentary aligned with their values or advertising guidelines.
‘Channel 4 is a commercially funded public service broadcaster,’ they shared in a statement. ‘We use commercial revenues such as advertising to make programmes that deliver our remit to create change through entertainment across a wide range of issues. Our programming is created independently from our commercial operation.’
However, those advertisers have restrictions on what kind of content they can be associated with, especially regarding anything of a sexual nature.
Addressing the Bonnie Blue documentary, a Channel 4 spokesperson told Metro: ‘We take great care to ensure that advertising is appropriately placed across all programming, particularly where content may be sensitive or potentially contentious.
‘In the case of 1000 Men and Me: The Bonnie Blue Story, the programme was reviewed in advance of transmission to ensure advertising was suitable. Several brands and categories were excluded to avoid inappropriate juxtapositions.’
The documentary — and Bonnie herself — have been the source of huge amounts of controversy due to the graphic nature of the content.
One scene saw the controversial OnlyFans creator dressed in a school uniform in a classroom with other younger stars, preparing to film an orgy.
Before the Channel 4 programme, OnlyFans banned the streaming of the feat and has since blocked her account entirely.
Bonnie – real name Tia Ballinger – was one of the most successful OnlyFans creators, claiming to earn more than US$2 million (£1.5 million) per month.
The ban on the video subscription site came into place after she advertised a ‘petting zoo’ event in which she planned to be ‘put in a box for people to do what they want’.
Channel 4 clearly anticipated the backlash with commissioning editor Tim Hancock defending airing the more shocking scenes ahead of its screening.
‘I believe it is Channel 4’s job to tell stories like this that are at the edge of modern morality,’ he said.
‘I commissioned this documentary because Bonnie is the tip of a huge iceberg. Since the pandemic, there has been a cultural shift in the acceptability of creating adult content and the types of people do it.’
Her previous stunts include having sex with legal teenage boys at Freshers’ Week, interactions which were filmed and involved some of them losing their virginity.
Bonnie dismissed those who implied she was ‘traumatised’, insisting she ‘come[s] from a beautiful family’ and ‘genuinely love my life, and I’m super grateful for it.’
Concern about the documentary extended beyond the advertisers, as children’s commissioner, Dame Rachel de Souza said it risks damaging efforts to protect children from the impact of online porn.
She said: ‘For years we have been fighting to protect our children from the kind of degrading, violent sex that exists freely on their social media feeds. This documentary risks taking us a step back by glamorising, even normalising, the things young people tell me are frightening, confusing and damaging to their relationships.’
Bonnie Blue: 1000 Men and Me is streaming on Channel 4.
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