BBC Three tweeted a meme of Ed Sheeran, inspired by Britney Spears' 2007 break down, that many have condemned as offensive.

On April 1 - April Fool's Day - the online channel tweeted a picture of Ed Sheeran seemingly shaving off all his hair.

The BBC have since deleted the post, but they had captioned it:

'BREAKING NEWS.

'Ed Sheeran has gone full 2007 Britney.'

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It was screen-grabbed by a Twitter user, just before it was removed, who criticised on account of the fact that earlier this year they claimed to be tackling the stigma and discrimination associated with mental health, with open conversations across radio, TV and online.

The user posted the comment: 'The BBC announced that in 2017 they'd be challenging the discrimination and tackling the stigma of mental health.'

Another user shared their disdain at the BBC's attempt at an April Fool joke, posting: 'There's nothing funny about Britney suffering from mental health issues & people taking the piss out of her.'

Charlotte Moore, Director of Content, had said via a BBC press release about their mental health season: 'One in four of us experience mental health problems in any given year and yet people with mental health issues still feel isolated and unable to talk about them.

'I hope this season of thought provoking programmes across the BBC will contribute to an important national conversation, challenge discrimination and tackle the stigma that continues to surround mental health.'

The very same day, BBC Three's Twitter account went on to share a woman's account of dealing with Bipolar disorder in order to mark World Bipolar Day.

One social media user responded angrily: 'You don't care about MH. You're a bunch of fakes tbh. Exhibit A.'

The BBC have since issued a statement (via MailOnline) which reads: 'BBC Three has a history of supporting mental health issues and the tweet was not intended as a reference to mental health, or designed to cause any offence.

'We have therefore removed it from our twitter feed.'

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Naomi Gordon

Naomi Gordon is news writer mainly covering entertainment news with a focus on celebrity interviews and television.