Celebrity Big Brother’s John Barnes defended by family after ‘homophobic’ comments

The family of Celebrity Big Brother contestant John Barnes have released a statement in his defence after he was accused of making homophobic remarks on the show.

During a discussion with fellow housemate Shane Jenek, ex-footballer Barnes claimed that straight men can feel "uncomfortable" around gay men during Sunday's episode.

“There’s this uncomfortable feeling. They’re thinking, ‘You’re going to make a move on me, you’re going to touch me’,” he said.

He also went on to reveal that if anything happened romantically between Jenek and friend Andrew Brady, that Brady "would be out of the club".

His comments were criticised by CBB viewers who accused him of being "homophobic" and "offensive".

Friends and relatives of the former Liverpool player released a lengthy statement on his Twitter account saying the backlash had been "completely out of keeping with [their] experience of John".

"It seems quite clear to us from the discussion as presented on the show that John is not offering the statements as reflections of his own feelings but an as explanation (but not justification) of the mentality that can cause some straight men to hold homophobic beliefs," it read.

"This interpretation is entirely in keeping with our experience of discussing similar topics with John and also with his approach to discussing racism in private and public.

"John has always been interested in understanding the motivation behind various forms of prejudice rather than simply condemning it outright and shutting down any further dissection."

Barnes, who was born in Jamaica, is known for having spoken out about racism in football during his time at various clubs and as an England international.

The full statement can be viewed on John Barnes’ Twitter account.