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  "path": "/celebrity/bbc-have-i-got-news-for-you-elon-musk-restore",
  "publishedAt": "2026-05-31T16:19:33.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.gbnews.com",
  "tags": [
    "Amanda Holden distracts ITV BGT fans with daring final outfit choice: 'Absolutely smoking'",
    "Jeremy Clarkson breaks down in tears as Hawkstone Farmers Choir crowned Britain's Got Talent winners",
    "ITV BGT fans left frustrated as they 'work out' magician's act after awkward swear word blunder",
    "The GB News Editorial Charter"
  ],
  "textContent": "\n\n\nBBC comedy panel show Have I Got News For You has sparked backlash after panellists mocked Elon Musk and Rupert Lowe during a discussion about the upcoming Makerfield by-election.\n\nDuring Friday night's episode, team captains Ian Hislop and Paul Merton discussed the challenge facing Reform UK in the constituency, suggesting support for Mr Lowe's Restore Britain movement could split the right-wing vote.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nThe conversation soon turned to Tesla billionaire Mr Musk, who has previously expressed support for Mr Lowe and recently commented on reports that a black actress had been cast as Helen of Troy in Christopher Nolan's forthcoming adaptation of The Odyssey.\n\nReferencing the controversy, one panellist remarked that Mr Musk had been \"very upset\" by the casting decision despite Helen being a fictional character.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nTRENDING\n\nStories\n\nVideos\n\nYour Say\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nThe discussion then prompted a joke about the tech entrepreneur's knowledge of classical literature.\n\n\"And again, I think the suggestion that he's read The Odyssey, he's pushing it,\" one panellist said.\n\n\"I think the only Homer he's aware of is in The Simpsons.\"\n\nThe comments quickly circulated online, where some viewers accused the programme of being out of touch and dismissive.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nOne critic wrote on X: \"This show is now an artefact. It all seems so anachronistic. Their snobbery is so old hat. 'The richest man in the world, who is working to send man to Mars, is so stupid he can't have read The Odyssey hohoho.'\"\n\nAnother added: \"The latest from Have I Got News For You takes a pop at Rupert Lowe and Elon Musk. I remember when this show was the most based thing on TV. Now it's pompous posh lefties sneering down their noses at the common folk. The BBC is beyond dead and buried.\"\n\nA third viewer wrote: \"It's anti-humour. Sneering midwits with their noses latched to the establishment arse like a human centipede.\"\n\nOthers accused the panel of being detached from public opinion.\n\n### LATEST DEVELOPMENTS\n\n\n\n\n  * Amanda Holden distracts ITV BGT fans with daring final outfit choice: 'Absolutely smoking'\n  * Jeremy Clarkson breaks down in tears as Hawkstone Farmers Choir crowned Britain's Got Talent winners\n  * ITV BGT fans left frustrated as they 'work out' magician's act after awkward swear word blunder\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n\"It's all so smug and pompous. They're all so f****** full of themselves. Could they be more out of touch?\" one post read.\n\nHowever, not everyone agreed with the criticism.\n\nOne social media user defended the joke, writing: \"Not to mount a general defence of HIGNFY, however: given that the billionaire in question is forever trying to portray himself as a great thinker and western civilisation connoisseur, but in fact outs himself as a pig-ignorant halfwit on a daily basis, I'd say this is fair game.\"\n\nThe exchange came amid wider discussion about the political implications of the Makerfield by-election, with commentators debating whether support for Restore Britain could impact Reform UK's electoral prospects.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nMr Lowe launched Restore Britain after leaving Reform UK earlier this year and has since attracted backing from a number of high-profile figures, including Musk.\n\nThis is not the first time the popular BBC show has been called out perceived political bias.\n\nIn 2015, Nigel Farage and UKIP lodged a formal complaint with Kent Police against the BBC and Have I Got News For You after panellist Camilla Long joked about Mr Farage's limited appearances in South Thanet during the General Election campaign, the constituency he was contesting at the time.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nThe programme has also attracted criticism from Conservative supporters over its treatment of Brexit and Tory politicians, with one 2019 episode generating more than 100 complaints alleging it was \"anti-Tory\" and \"anti-Brexit\".\n\nIn 2024, former Conservative minister Dame Andrea Jenkyns accused the show of having a \"biased\" studio audience following a heated exchange with team captain Ian Hislop.\n\nMr Hislop has consistently rejected claims of political bias, arguing that the satirical programme receives accusations of unfairness from whichever political party happens to be on the receiving end of its jokes.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n**Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter**",
  "title": "BBC Have I Got News For You slammed for 'snobby' Elon Musk and Restore jibe: 'Pompous posh lefties'"
}