TLC cancels ‘Here Comes Honey Boo Boo’

There goes Honey Boo Boo.

In the wake of a scandal involving family matriarch “Mama June” Shannon reportedly dating convicted child molester Mark Anthony McDaniel, TLC has immediately canceled the hit reality series “Here Comes Honey Boo Boo.”

In a statement, a TLC spokeswoman said, “TLC has cancelled the series ‘Here Comes Honey Boo Boo’ and ended all activities around the series, effective immediately. Supporting the health and welfare of these remarkable children is our only priority. TLC is faithfully committed to the children’s ongoing comfort and well-being.”

Reports of Shannon’s new boyfriend first appeared on TMZ on Thursday. McDaniel, 53, was released from prison earlier this year after serving nearly 10 years for aggravated child molestation. According to the report, he had forced oral sex on an 8-year-old child, one of Shannon’s relatives.

One of Shannon’s daughters, Lauryn “Pumpkin” Shannon, denied the report to Radar Online and said McDaniel and Shannon haven’t seen each other in 10 years. She added that a recent photo of the two together had been Photoshopped.

Mama June and Mike “Sugar Bear” Thompson, the parents of Alana “Honey Boo Boo” Thompson, who famously got married on the show last year, split in September.

Shannon reacted to the show’s cancellation Friday morning in a video posted to Facebook.

“The statement of me dating a sex offender is totally untrue,” she said. “I would not ever, ever put my kids in danger.”

She continued with a thank you to her fans for the “love, support, the careness.”

She added that the family would continue to put up their Christmas display, “if you all choose to come out and meet the family.”

She also addressed the break-up with Thompson but said she would now stay quiet for awhile.

“TLC has kinda told us to hush-hush,” she said.

The series, which has been a hit for TLC, finished airing its fourth season in August with lower ratings than previous seasons.

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