Rambolic

A few days ago BBC Radio 2 broadcast Russell Brand’s scheduled radio show for the last time for the foreseeable future. Jonathan Ross was a guest co-presenter, and they had scheduled to run a telephone interview with Andrew Sachs, most famous for playing Manuel in Fawlty Towers. Ross called Sachs, and the phone rang a few times before his answering machine kicked in (who uses them still?) Brand is hardly the withdrawn type, and launched into four consecutive less-than-polite (but funny nonetheless) answerphone messages. I’ll refrain from the details – you can Google for the transcript or listen to it on Youtube. In short there were references to Brand’s sexual relationship with Sachs’ granddaughter, and some fun was poked.

There’s no question about whether they should or shouldn’t have done so – it was clearly wrong. However, the BBC, at last count, reported that over 30,000 people have lodged complaints about the show.  This has caused a huge ruction in the press too, and the public called for the resignation of both Brand, and also Ross (who is probably one of the highest paid BBC entertainers).

Now, I’m all for sensibility and standards, but this is getting quite stupid now.  The media, in particular the BBC who seem to enjoy wallowing in their own downfalls, have blown this entirely out of proportion.  The show was aired on the 18th of October 2008.  After the show, the BBC received ONE complaint from a Ms Pool about the content of the show, voicing concern for Sachs.  At this stage I’ll point out that this was a pre-recorded show from two days previous, and I understand that the BBC and Sachs had been in contact, and the decision was made, by Sachs, to go ahead with the show pending an edit.  He actually authorised the BBC to broadcast the calls, but even if he hadn’t, he had time to stick his oar in.  If the BBC really were making such a huge mistake surely it would have been pulled immediately.  Following these complaints Brand apologised for the offense caused, but added “it was funny though.”

It seems that when the press reported that there had been an undisclosed amount of complaints about the show, and broadcast snippets of the calls made, more and more people wrote to complain.  I mentioned earlier that 30,000 complaints had already been received, but I’ll bet that this number is fast approaching, or maybe already exceeding, the number of listeners who actually heard the show.  Complaints aside, if you are scheduled to perform a telephone interview on the UK’s most popular radio station then you have the consideration to actually be present at home to take the call.  If you’re not there to take the call you’re leaving two quick-witted comedians with a quarter hour to fill with ad-lib… and yes, they will take the piss.

What really riles me is that following the number of complaints that the show eventually received the show was mentioned in the House of Commons.  Now, correct me if I’m wrong, but given the current climate we have far better things to be discussing in Parliament than a couple of jokers leaving some naughty voicemails.  Subsequently the BBC took Brand and Ross off air indefinitely pending invetigation, Brand has since resigned from his radio show, Ross has been suspended without pay for twelve weeks and has also stepped down from presenting the British Comedy Awards – the first he will have not presented in seventeen years.  Oh yeah,  and then BBC Radio 2’s controller, Leslie Douglas, has resigned.

I think the whole point of this is that good comedy is irreverent, is off-beat, is offensive.  Good comedy is having a laugh at somebody else’s expense.  The way we are going comedy is going to be so toned down that it will almost be a bad drama.  Actually, looking at which comedies are being commissioned at the moment, most already are.  There are only two people who have a right to be upset, and that’s Sachs and his granddaughter.  Sachs has been quite reserved and put it down to a learning curve on Brand’s expense.  That given, I’m not entirely sure what all the fuss is about.