The reason ITV’s Loose Women attracts controversy is that some people just ‘don’t like seeing opinionated women’ on TV, the show’s youngest ever panellist GK Barry has claimed.
Speaking to the Daily Mail’s Tales from the Celebrity Trenches, the 26-year-old TikTok star and podcaster argued that a blatant double standard in how outspoken women are perceived compared to men lies at the heart of criticisms of the daytime show.
Barry joined Loose Women in 2024, becoming the first panellist born in the same year the show launched in 1999.
The reason ITV’s Loose Women attracts controversy is that some people just ‘don’t like seeing opinionated women’ on TV, the show’s youngest ever panellist GK Barry has claimed
Barry joined Loose Women in 2024, becoming the first panellist born in the same year the show launched in 1999
Speaking to Tales from the Celebrity Trenches, Barry argued that a double standard in how outspoken women are perceived compared to men informs criticisms of the daytime show
Loose Women has courted controversy in recent months, with veteran panellist Nadia Sawalha standing down amid a social media storm over antisemitism and ITV budget cuts forcing the show to scrap its live studio audience.
Despite the show’s recent difficulties, Barry was quick to dismiss rumours of unrest behind the scenes.
‘When I am in a room full of those women, it’s the best’, Barry told podcast host Jamie East.
‘I know there’s a stigma in the media that all the Loose Women hate each other, but we genuinely do get on. They’re hilarious.
‘I don’t think people like seeing opinionated women, that’s what I have noticed coming into the industry.
‘If you’re a woman, I think you’re expected to be absolutely fine with people taking the piss out of you. When it’s a guy, it’s a different vibe.
‘There’s a lot of strong-minded women on there, and I think they just hate to see it coming.’
Elsewhere in the podcast, Barry lifted the lid on the most outrageous rumours she’d read about herself online.
She first shot to fame in 2020 when a TikTok video filmed outside her family home went viral overnight, setting her on a path from social media star to podcaster to TV panellist.
Barry first shot to fame in 2020 when a TikTok video filmed outside her family home went viral overnight, setting her on a path from social media star to podcaster to TV panellist
Elsewhere in the podcast, Barry lifted the lid on the most outrageous rumours she’d read about herself online
Barry revealed that some people online have tried to claim she is a man, due to her distinctively deep voice.
‘People think I am a man’, Barry said.
‘Apparently, it’s because I have got quite a deep voice. That’s the most outrageous rumour I’ve heard.
‘Someone also made up that I cheated on my girlfriend with Curtis Pritchard at a nightclub. I had to shut that one down quick.’
Barry has been with professional footballer Ella Rutherford since May 2024.
To hear GK Barry discuss her career, love life and more, search Tales from the Celebrity Trenches now, wherever you get your podcasts or on YouTube.
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