Channel 4's 'brownface' controversy: Documentary causes storm after white woman goes undercover as Pakistani Muslim

Channel 4 is in the midst of a 'brownface' controversy over a programme where a white British woman darkened her skin to go undercover as a Muslim in Manchester's Pakistani community.

The documentary, to be aired next week, centres around Katie Freeman who agreed to spend a week inside the Muslim population just days after a terror attack on Manchester Arena killed 23 people and injured more than 250.

Katie Freeman said the experience of being abused just for walking down the street as a Muslim made her challenge her own prejudices. Channel 4

Freeman, 44, agreed to take part to question her own prejudices but got more than she anticipated as the bomb detonated just after the Channel 4 production team had made Katie up to look like a Pakistani Muslim. As she walked around Manchester in a hijab wearing a fake nose, teeth and darkened skin, she was heckled and abused with one man shouting at her from a pub 'f***ing Muslims in this town?'

The mum-of-two wept at the reaction: 'It makes me ashamed to live here. I was raging and fuming inside. But I also felt vulnerable. What harm was I doing?'

But the documentary has caused a storm and faces accusation of racism with one viewer saying, according to the Sun: 'Channel4 have totally missed the mark here.

'Who on earth thought it would be a good idea to put prosthetics on somebody to make them a caricature of people of a different race on primetime TV in 2017? Madness.'

Katie Freeman spent the week as part of a real Muslim family in Manchester Channel 4

Founder of equality group Faith Matter, Fiyaz Mughal, told the Daily Star: 'This is trying to drive ratings by racial stereotyping.

'Channel 4 needs to apologise.'

My Week As A Muslim airs on Monday October 23, 9pm, on Channel 4.

News
UK Christian and Gospel music set for official singles chart launch
UK Christian and Gospel music set for official singles chart launch

The UK’s Christian and Gospel music scene is set to receive a major boost with the announcement of a new official singles chart, developed in partnership between AStepFWD and The Official Charts Company.

More Protestant churches closed than opened in the US in 2024, new analysis finds
More Protestant churches closed than opened in the US in 2024, new analysis finds

The closures have served to highlight the importance of church planting, say researchers.

Cultivating the fruits of the Spirit: gentleness that reflects God’s strength
Cultivating the fruits of the Spirit: gentleness that reflects God’s strength

To be gentle is often equated with being passive, fragile, or easily overlooked - a liability rather than a virtue. But the Kingdom of God operates by an entirely different framework.

Isolation is a reality for pastors despite strong marriages, new research finds
Isolation is a reality for pastors despite strong marriages, new research finds

Pastors may be surrounded by people every week, but many are navigating their calling with limited personal support, according to new research highlighting a growing gap between ministry life and supportive friendship.