OFCOM has ruled that this years Celebrity Big Brother did not breach broadcasting rules despite hundreds of complaints about rapper Coolio.

Most of the complaints related to his sexist and allegedly bullying behaviour, however OFCOM said that Coolio was the “villain of the piece” for many but that “such a role, after 10 years of Big Brother, is generally expected by the audience”.

Ofcom said the series complied with rules because “any potentially offensive content that was shown and the manner in which the friction and the arguments were handled and presented by Big Brother on behalf of Channel 4, were adequately justified by the context”.

Channel 4 said it was pleased with OFCOM’s decision.

“Conflicts can arise within the Big Brother house, but both the producers and commissioning editors encourage housemates to work differences out amongst themselves initially,” it said in a statement.

“Channel 4 has robust procedures in place to safeguard housemates’ welfare and avoid any harm or offence to fellow housemates or viewers, and Big Brother will intervene as and when necessary.”