India Willoughby: Who is she, age, career, is she related to Holly Willoughby, was she on Celebrity Big Brother and what has happened with the Gosport Ferry?

INDIA Willoughby is one of Britain's most famous trans women and she has made headlines this week after she criticised a senior captain of the Gosport Ferry.
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She made history after becoming the first trans woman to front an all-woman talkshow.

India has had a successful career as both a journalist and TV presenter, featuring on Channel 5 News back in 2017 and as a recurring guest-star on ITV's Good Morning Britain.

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India Willoughby is an English newsreader and reality TV personality.India Willoughby is an English newsreader and reality TV personality.
India Willoughby is an English newsreader and reality TV personality.
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But who is India Willoughby and what happened with the senior captain of the Gosport Ferry?

Here's everything you need to know:

Who is India Willoughby?

India is a 56-year-old English newsreader, broadcaster, journalist, and reality television personality.

She is from Carlisle in Cumbria.

At the start of her career, India presented the news in the North East and Cumbria as a TV reporter for ITV Border before her transition.

In 2010 she left her regional job in Carlisle after ten years of presenting the show but five years later, she re-joined as India following her gender reassignment surgery.

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India was the first transgender woman in the world to be a panelist on an all-female talk show following her appearance on BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour.

In 2017, she joined 5News on Channel 5 as Britain's first transgender national television reader where she read the lunchtime and evening updates.

Later that year, India was invited onto ITV's Loose Women to tell her story.

Her interview on Loose Women led her to become a co-host on the show.

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India also has a son called Rhodes and she is based in Newcastle.

Was she on Celebrity Big Brother?

In January 2018, India entered the Celebrity Big Brother house for the series which was subtitled ‘Year of the Woman’.

During her time on the show, India came to blows with contestants such as Ann Widdecombe and Amanda Barrie after they misgendered her.

She also admitted to having a fear of drag queens to Ru Paul's Drag Race star Courtney Act.

India was the first housemate to be evicted from the show.

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In her exit interview, host Emma Willis asked India if she thought she could have handled the confusion around her gender differently.

India responded: ‘I should have just kept my gob shut and waited for the questions to come and answer them one by one’.

India received backlash on social media after her stint in the Celebrity Big Brother house and she described herself as the 'most hated transgender person in Britain.'

Since her appearance on Celebrity Big Brother, India has been a regular guest on ITV's Good Morning Britain and featured in shows such as Channel 5's Most Shocking Celebrity Moments 2018.

Is India related to Holly Willoughby?

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Despite sharing the same last name, India is not related to This Morning presenter Holly Willoughby.

Why did India leave GB News?

The broadcaster joined GB News as a commentator back in June 2021.

In the same month, India left the show after she accused the channel of 'demonising trans people at every opportunity.'

When GB News launched, they platformed anti-trans voices such as Maya Forstater and the LGB alliance.

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India told Pink News: ‘I was really disappointed in the first week when I saw they were demonising trans people at every opportunity.

‘Even me, everyone in the country knows that I will criticise certain LGBT+ issues. But while I criticise, I never demonise, and I don’t hate anyone. And this sickens me to the pit of my stomach.’

India decided to quit the show after her initial on-screen interaction with GB News host Dan Wooton.

Dan introduced India as 'trans broadcaster India Willoughby' to which she replied 'It's great to be with you, gay presenter Dan Wooton.'

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India told Mail+: ‘I didn’t want to be part of what I considered the demonisation of a section of society with no representation.’

What happened between India and the Gosport Ferry?

India has recently been involved in a row on Twitter over a comment made by a senior captain of the Gosport Ferry.

On February 28, captain Kevin Clark tweeted in response to an initial tweet by @DanLondon666 that said 'Who and what is India Willoughby', to which Kevin added 'A man'.

Kevin's comment sparked outrage from the Good Morning Britain guest star who tweeted her response to the Gosport Ferry.

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She said: 'Hi @GosportFerry – one of your ferry captains @kevclark19 is being transphobic. Not a good look for your LGBT customers, families and friends. Or for that matter the schools you work with, such as @Leeslandschools or LGBT supporters @GosportBFC – who you sponsor. FAO @dailyecho'.

Gosport Ferry has said it is investigating the situation and they responded to India's tweet, stating that they are dealing with the matter.

The service tweeted: ‘Thank you @IndiaWilloughby for bringing this tweet to our attention. We are dealing with this matter and the individual as a priority. This certainly falls short of our Company values & beliefs & we apologise unreservedly.’

The general manager of the Gosport Ferry, Clive Lane, told The News: ‘There is an internal investigation going on currently and we have commented on this matter on our Twitter page. We have since been thanked by India Willoughby for looking into it.

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'If we need diversity training following the investigation then that is what we will do.

'The captain is still working and the investigation is underway at the moment.'

Since the Twitter exchange, India has made her account private.

The News has approached Mr Clark for comment.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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