Nadia Sawalha believes speaking her mind could wreck her career but insists: “I have to do it.” The Loose Women star last appeared on the daytime discussion show in April and this week she revealed she had threatened legal action, claiming ITV bullied her out of her job.
She fears she is being targeted for speaking out for Palestinian rights and was worried that police officers could come knocking on her door. And she said: “I accept that there is a huge risk I will never work in television again.”
Colleagues' Support and Fear
Colleagues have offered Nadia support, but she claims many are too scared to do so publicly. She said two well-known faces at ITV reacted to an Instagram video she posted on her threat to sue the network. But Nadia added: “I deleted it because I don’t want these people to be phased out. I feel sad that there is an atmosphere of fear that if they were to be seen to be supporting me, their career could be at risk. I don’t believe for one second the head of daytime wanted me off that show, I feel for her.”
Career and Allegations
Nadia joined Loose Women when it began in 1999, leaving in 2002 and returning in 2013. She claims she has been “phased out” of the current series without any explanation. She said she was told of a 20-page dossier of allegations made against her and that ITV told her they did not have the staff to review it. She said: “I haven’t been allowed to answer one single allegation because I don’t know what they are. I was in a state of shock and so upset. I begged them not to do this to me. I know I am missed on that show. I have worked on Loose Women on and off for 27 years. I know my worth. I have never had to see a boss.”
Loose Women prides itself on no-holds-barred discussion. She added: “I want people to be less afraid. I haven’t got any choice, I have to speak out.”
Legal Action and Petition
Earlier this week it emerged Nadia’s lawyers wrote to ITV claiming: “Nadia was treated less favourably than other ITV presenters who faced significant public complaints.” The European Legal Support Centre (ELSC), representing Nadia, refused to comment to the Mirror about which ITV stars they were referring to or if they have been named in the letter. But they said the issue raised “serious concerns about equality in the workplace and the treatment of those who speak out for Palestinian rights”.
Speaking on Thursday, Nadia said she would not be “bullied into silence”. She has launched a petition calling for ITV to apologise publicly and reinstate her on the panel show. It has already garnered more than 60,000 signatures. In a video, she said: “After I began speaking publicly in support of Palestine in December 2023, I became the target of an escalating campaign of smears, complaints, hostile media coverage and calls to have me removed from Loose Women.”
Background and Impact
The panellist said she was removed from the series in July. ITV has previously declined to comment. The controversy began in April when false claims were published alleging that Nadia and her husband, Green Party member Mark Adderley, had shown “support for terrorism or hatred of Jews.” Last month she received substantial libel damages. Nadia said: “Within a couple of hours [of the defamatory articles going live], I got a call from ITV, ‘It’s just a bit noisy for us.’ I was absolutely frantic. This awful, untrue thing about us had been written and we were in a total state. Two Green Party members had been arrested the day before. The Golders Green stabbings had just happened, then that came out. I was beside myself. We could literally have the police knock on the door right now.”
In May, Campaign Against Antisemitism questioned whether Nadia was “too loose-tongued” to be on the show. Nadia vehemently denies being antisemitic. Nadia suspects some bosses feared she might get political live on air and claims she was taken off a show in which former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was set to appear. She said: “They moved me off, which they have the right to do, so I wouldn’t be on the panel with him. I was angry.” The mum-of-two also said her salary had been halved.
A legal organisation representing Nadia has sent a pre-action letter to ITV, claiming it subjected Nadia to discrimination and harassment “because of her protected philosophical beliefs”. ITV was contacted for comment.
