Big Brother's Trish Balusa files lawsuit against ITV after Rochelle Rackham's controversial win - alleging double standards over 'racist' tweets scandal left her in 'psychological turmoil'

By REBECCA LAWRENCE, DEPUTY SHOWBUSINESS EDITOR (DIGITAL FEATURES)

Published: 12:17 GMT, 8 November 2026 | Updated: 15:51 GMT, 8 November 2026

Big Brother star Trish Balusa has filed a lawsuit against ITV plc, Banijay UK Productions Limited, and Initial TV, alleging she is a victim of negligence, breach of contract, and misrepresentation.

Trish appeared on the ITV reboot of the series in 2023, being evicted from the show by public vote a week before the final.

Days later, old 'racist and homophobic' social media posts resurfaced online, and she was subsequently removed from the spin-off show Big Brother: Late & Live and was the only housemate not to be invited to the final.

Now Trish, who now works as a keynote speaker and social justice advocate, has accused ITV of double standards following controversial housemate Rochelle Rackham's win on Thursday.

Rochelle, 57, was declared the winner to a shocked and jeering crowd after past 'racist' posts were uncovered by the Daily Mail during her time in the house .

Trish, 35, is seeking a six-figure settlement, alleging that there was deliberate misrepresentation of the scope of social media vetting conducted prior to her participation in Big Brother, and she has been left in 'psychological turmoil' as a result.

Big Brother's Trish Balusa has filed a lawsuit against ITV plc, Banijay UK Productions Limited, and Initial TV, alleging she is a victim of negligence, breach of contract, and misrepresentation

Trish has accused ITV of double standards following controversial housemate Rochelle Rackham's win on Thursday (pictured)

Trish told the Daily Mail: 'I've always been driven by injustice when it happens to others. Trying to survive my experience with ITV forced me to turn that same advocacy towards myself, because I'm worthy of fighting for too.

'I realised that asking for change behind closed doors had no impact, so I brought this claim, because broadcasters must be held accountable for their part in the trauma participants experience.

'Like many people, especially from marginalised communities, I went in naïve about what I was signing up for. I didn't realise it could become an exploitative journey that drains you, then leaves you to fend for yourself without the duty of care you were promised.

'I may be at the centre of this, but it isn't only about me. Reality TV needs structured, consistent duty of care policies that apply equally to everyone.

'Executives and production teams also need extensive training. They remain faceless, but their decisions have the biggest knock-on effect, and it's participants who are left to face the public's rage.

'Time and again, we've seen microaggressions toward some communities used as entertainment, while other groups are protected.

'How many more lives must be lost? How many more reality TV stars must we watch lose their minds before we accept that the only reforms worth championing are the ones that change the very obvious disparity in the system?

'Things have to change so every reality TV participant gets the protection, opportunities, grace and duty of care they accessible.'

She added in a statement to Reality Tea : 'What played out on screen shows exactly how race and identity shape the way a person is treated, received and humanised.

'I faced a brutal narrative over past comments, so relentless that even the support I was offered fell short.

'Now I’ve watched a contestant face allegations of discriminatory behaviour, past and present, and be protected, defended and, ultimately crowned by the very public that demanded accountability from me.

'Britain needs to be honest about how it treats black women on reality TV. Duty of care training can’t stop at contestants.

'Producers and production teams must be held to the same standard, or they will keep amplifying the very racism they’re meant to protect us from.

'Accountability isn’t reserved for participants. Production companies have a duty to protect contestants from others who display harmful behaviour; run a properly-informed and adequate vetting process; and apply a structured, consistent disciplinary process. When they fail on any of these, they must be held accountable, too.

'I always knew what happened to me was less about my words and more about who I am. I was gaslit, and three years on, I’ve been proven right. The accountability everyone demanded of me must now apply to others.

'What has been an ongoing psychological turmoil for me will now be a legal and financial learning point for those responsible, and hopefully can trigger genuine reform in duty of care, race relations, and reality TV.'

The Daily Mail has contacted ITV, Initial/Banijay and Trish's representatives for comment.

Trish, 35, is seeking a six-figure settlement, alleging there was deliberate misrepresentation of the scope of social media vetting conducted prior to her participation in Big Brother

Trish previously escalated an intersectional discrimination complaint to Ofcom in December 2024, alleging she had experienced discrimination both inside and outside of the BBUK house, and accused ITV of failing to provide adequate welfare support.

ITV denied the claims, with a spokesperson saying it was 'not a version of events we recognise'.

Trish's 'racist' tweets from 2012 were only discovered following her exit because during their time in the house all contestants set their social media profiles to private.

She then apologised in a public statement, stating: 'There are no excuses for the ignorance that I showed and I am deeply disappointed, embarrassed and ashamed that I once made such comments.

'I have come a very long way since by educating myself and being educated by others on the impact and harm those views cause.'

After producers did not invite Trish to attend the Big Brother final alongside her other housemates, they revealed they were investigating the third party hired to trawl over housemates' social media before they enter the show to search for problematic posts, to discover why the tweets were not found.

At the time, a spokesperson for Big Brother told The Sun of the investigation: 'This weekend, we have been made aware of concerning historical tweets.

'We are currently looking into why they were not identified by the independent supplier we engage to review the digital footprint of potential Housemates as part of our pre-checks.'

Last month, the Daily Mail revealed that this year's winner Rochelle had shared a 'racist' social media post 11 years ago, when she was working as an unknown nail technician.

The offensive message featured an image of a person bungee jumping, overlaid with the words: ‘Experience bungee jumping only £35 a jump. Muslims go free. No strings attached.’

Rochelle captioned the reshare: ‘Love this’, tagged friends she thought would ‘appreciate’ the joke and added: ‘Lol.’

The post prompted fans, industry insiders and fellow contestants to question why she remained on the show after it emerged.