Emmerdale’s horrific acid attack on Ross Barton has attracted more than 200 complaints to the broadcasting watchdog, OfCom.
OfCom will assess the complaints under the broadcasting rules before deciding whether to investigate.
The grisly scenes saw Ross having acid thrown in his face after Debbie’s plot to take revenge on Joe Tate went badly wrong.
Viewers watched in horror as Ross writhed in agony on the ground, before being helped – ironically – by Joe and his right-hand man Graham Foster.
Graham poured water on Ross’s injuries, telling the 999 call-handler that he knew what he was doing. Then Ross was rushed to hospital where the doctors and nurses worked to flush away the acid from his skin.
Emmerdale told radiotimes.com that it took its responsibilities to the viewers seriously.
“The storyline was researched thoroughly with medical experts at Pinderfields Hospital,” said a spokesperson for the show.
“For the sequence following Ross’s attack we adhered carefully to the NHS guidelines about how to help people who are the victim of an acid attack.”
A real-life survivor of a similar attack was also consulted during the scriptwriting process.
Many viewers thought the scenes were too graphic to be shown before the watershed.
“We don’t need to see that on television, especially at 7.30pm,” said one fan.
But others argued that there were plenty of warnings before the episodes were aired so people could have turned off if they had wanted.
Read more: Former Corrie star disappointed by the reaction to the soap’s first gay kiss.
And others argued that the scenes where Graham acted quickly to help Ross even showed people what to do if they were ever in the same horrible situation.
“I learned a few new serious information about this vicious life-changing crime last night,” one fan wrote. “What you need to do immediately to help an acid attack victim is one of them.”
Read more: Dale Winton reveals ill health has kept him out of the limelight
Do you think last night’s Emmerdale went too far? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page @EntertainmentDailyFix and let us know what you think!
Emmerdale continues tonight at 7pm on ITV