Former Strictly Come Dancing star Eddie Kadi has said that more work needs to go into fixing the problem of unconscious bias in reality show voting after being the fourth person eliminated from his series.
The comedian, 42, competed in the BBC competition’s 2023 series alongside Karen Hauer, with the pair being the fourth to leave after landing in the dance-off two weeks in a row. Last year, he joined the cast of I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here – but was the second star to be voted off after ex-footballer Alex Scott.
With a pattern emerging where contestants of colour are often the first to be voted off shows like Strictly, I’m a Celebrity and The Traitors in recent years, it has ignited debate around whether those voting are letting internal, unconscious biases inform their decision on who stays in the competition.
When asked his thoughts on unconscious bias within reality shows, Kadi told The i Paper: “I’m someone who doesn’t deny that these things exist, but instead of the problem, let’s look at the solution.
“For me, the solution is that the harder we work, the more it is possible to fill up new spaces, to represent.”
The Independent has contacted Strictly Come Dancing, I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! and The Traitors for comment.
Despite leaving the jungle early on, Kadi said that being on I’m a Celebrity was life-changing. “Kudos to the people that brought us together because, the way everything is going in the country, we needed to showcase how it is very possible for people from different walks of life to all be thrown into this jungle and get along,” he said, adding that he lost six-and-a-half kilos during his “intense” time in Australia.
“It’s an experience I wouldn’t exchange for anything,” he added.
The topic of unconscious bias arose earlier this year after The Traitors’’s Black contestants Judy Wilson and Ross Garshong became two of the first to be banished by their fellow cast members. Meanwhile, the early banishments of YouTube star Niko Omilana and EastEnders’ Tameka Empson on Celebrity Traitors last year also raised eyebrows.
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 day
New subscribers only. £9.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled.
Try for free
ADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 day
New subscribers only. £9.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled.
Try for free
ADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.
Looking at the pattern, Micha Frazer-Carroll wrote in The Independent: The Traitors is a great show, and talking about these dynamics doesn’t have to take away from how brilliant it is. Avoiding talking about it, however, feels like a problem – at this point, it’s becoming the elephant in the room.”
Kadi’s Strictly professional partner Hauer confirmed in March that she was leaving the show after 14 years. The news followed rumours that she had been axed from the cast. In a video posted to Instagram, she tearfully said it was the “right time” to leave the show and “take on new projects in other areas that I’m passionate about”.
