Ellen DeGeneres’ appearance on The Graham Norton Show left viewers puzzled on Friday, with many questioning why she had been invited onto the sofa after spending so long away from the spotlight.
The 68-year-old star was once the host of her own hugely successful talk show, but withdrew from public life after the programme was cancelled in 2022 amid allegations of bullying.
During her conversation with Graham Norton, Ellen spoke candidly about her extended break from television. She admitted that she missed appearing on screen, although she revealed that she currently has no new work planned.
Ellen announced the end of her talk show in 2021, following an internal investigation into allegations of bullying in the workplace.
Since then, she has been living in the Cotswolds with her wife, Portia de Rossi.
Discussing her time away from television, Ellen said: ‘I’ve nothing really going on and I really miss being on TV. I miss a lot about it – laughing with the writers and the audience. I think about doing stuff here.’
Ellen DeGeneres’ appearance on The Graham Norton Show left fans confused, with many asking why she had been invited onto the sofa after her absence from the spotlight
‘I think it is pretty easy to get on TV here – you have a pottery show, you have a sewing show, and you even have a show about people watching TV shows!’
Ellen also looked back on her self-titled sitcom, which made television history by featuring the first openly gay lead character on a US series.
She said: ‘In the US they were not very thrilled about my character or me coming out so for it to be celebrated in London was such an honour. To be treated that way when everyone else was done with me was extraordinary.’
Because Ellen did not appear to be promoting a new project during her appearance—a common reason for guests to join Graham Norton—many viewers said they were confused by the interview.
One viewer wrote: ‘Why does it look so awkward that Ellen DeGeneres is on The Graham Norton Show?’
Others posted: ‘Ellen not clapping and sitting so ominously in the corner… evil beaming through the screen’; and ‘Why is Ellen DeGeneres on Graham Norton?’
Ellen’s career suffered a dramatic fall from grace after former employees of The Ellen DeGeneres Show accused the programme of fostering a ‘toxic’ workplace in which racism, bullying and sexual harassment were widespread.
For nearly two decades, DeGeneres ended each episode of her daily talk show with the same message: a smile and a reminder to ‘be kind to one another’.
Ellen appeared on The Graham Norton Show alongside Quentin Tarantino, Colin Farrell and Gemma Chan
As Ellen did not appear to be promoting a new project, which is usually why guests appear on The Graham Norton Show, viewers questioned the reason for her interview
However, staff members alleged that the host did not always follow that advice once the cameras stopped rolling.
Sources close to DeGeneres told Our News Outlet that she ran her household like a bootcamp, allegedly ‘laying traps’ for workers and ‘always choosing the opposite’ of kindness when dealing with staff.
The show remained on air after the 2020 scandal, but an internal investigation and falling ratings eventually contributed to its conclusion. The Ellen DeGeneres Show recorded its final episode in 2022 after 19 seasons.
She previously told The Hollywood Reporter: ‘I have to just trust that whatever happened during that time, which was obviously very, very difficult, happened for a reason.
‘I think that I learned a lot, and there were some things that came up that I was shocked and surprised by. It was eye-opening, but I just trust that that had to happen.’
Ellen and her wife Portia left the United States after Trump’s re-election as 47th president in November 2024.
Both she and de Rossi originally moved into an $18million house in The Cotswolds area, but the six-bedroom home was met with severe flooding due to Storm Bert.
An insider previously informed Our News Outlet: ‘Ellen and Portia have had several issues with the place they initially moved into.
‘First there was the flooding, of course, then there was an issue with some locals complaining about some building work carried out at the property.’
Ellen and Portia then moved to a different property which is only a 30-minute drive from the original home that they had bought.
However, an insider told The Mail on Sunday late last year that there is a possibility the couple could move back to the US, despite Trump still being in office.
And it was later revealed that Ellen and Portia purchased a $27million Montecito property last year in November.
