Tipping Point host Ben Shephard has come under fire for allegedly treating contestant Tracy unfairly in the latest nail-biting episode.

As three eager contestants stepped up to challenge the coin machine and test their knowledge, viewers were quick to call out a contentious moment involving Triage worker Tracy from County Durham.

In a race against the clock to secure a coin for the machine, Tracy was asked: “As a result of the 2017 general election in the UK, which conservative politician remained as Prime Minister?”

Confused, Tracy sought clarification: “Sorry, what year was it? ” Instead of simply confirming the year, Ben opted to repeat the entire question. The timer ran out before he finished, robbing Tracy of her chance to answer.

Viewers didn’t hold back in their criticism of host Ben, with one fan declaring he “did her dirty”. “That was really unfair to her to repeat the whole question Ben def screwed her there,” fumed one viewer.

“Tracy asked for the year, not the whole f**king question again, Ben! ” exclaimed another irate fan. A third chimed in: “You did her dirty there Ben, she only asked for the year to be repeated not the whole question. #tippingpoint”, while someone else pondered: “Maybe the #tippingpoint rule is you can only have whole questions repeated? “.

Despite the controversy, Tracy’s performance wasn’t hindered as she progressed to the next round alongside personal trainer Matt, having sent the third contestant Bill packing. Tracy then narrowly made it to the final, pocketing £2250, reports OK!.

The latest episode of the show has sparked quite the conversation as contestant Mike was heard rooting for the machine with his repeated cries of “come on baby”.

This comes after a previous episode where viewers were left exasperated by another contestant’s incessant shouts of “Come on baby! ” every time she played her counters, leading to calls for her disqualification. The situation escalated when she continued to encourage her tokens for the ideal drop, causing fans to share their opinions on X.

One viewer tweeted: “…And where’s the ‘Come on baby’ instant disqualification klaxon.” Meanwhile, another was in disbelief, asking: “Did she say ‘come on baby’? “.

Ben, who has been delighting audiences for more than ten years as the host of the ITV game show since 2012, also secured a permanent presenting spot on This Morning in March, joining co-host Cat Deeley.