Jamie Laing may have joked that his Boat Race blunder felt like the Oscars’ infamous “envelopegate,” but behind the scenes, the reality was far less light-hearted.
The Made In Chelsea star, 37, was left red-faced during Channel 4’s live broadcast when he mistakenly offered commiserations to Cambridge — despite them having just won against Oxford. Quickly realising the error, he corrected himself on air, saying it was a typo before properly congratulating the winners.
He later shared the awkward clip online, joking: “When you get handed the wrong cue card on LIVE TV,” appearing to brush off the incident with humour.
But sources claim the mood backstage told a very different story.
An insider revealed that while Jamie handled the situation professionally on camera, he was “furious” once the cameras stopped rolling. He reportedly felt the mistake should never have happened and was deeply frustrated that he ended up being the face of the blunder.
According to the source, Jamie immediately realised the moment would go viral and was unhappy about the backlash that followed. They added that he had been quick to shift blame onto the production team, pointing fingers at those working off-camera rather than taking full responsibility himself.
The incident quickly sparked outrage online, with viewers criticising both Jamie and Channel 4. Some questioned why he needed cue cards at all, while others took aim at the broadcaster for choosing him for such a high-profile sporting moment.
One viewer wrote that broadcasters shouldn’t rely on “incompetent reality TV stars” for major events, while another accused Channel 4 of giving opportunities to “nepo babies” instead of more qualified presenters.
Despite the backlash, Channel 4 stood firmly behind Jamie.
A spokesperson praised him as “a fantastic addition” who brought energy to the broadcast, stressing that mistakes are inevitable in live television. They also commended how professionally the situation was handled and even hinted at future collaborations, saying they would be delighted to work with him again.
The blunder came during Channel 4’s debut coverage of the iconic Boat Race, which drew an audience of around three million viewers across the weekend.
While Jamie may have tried to laugh it off publicly, it’s clear the fallout behind the scenes has been anything but smooth.
