does anyone else think this whole Brand and Ross thing is...

[sodiumnightlife]

fucking ridiculous? Neither are on my favourite entertainer's list, and I accept what they did was wrong and offensive. It does just seem that people know they can get the BBC over a barrel about something and get people fired. It's also hardly something for a prime minister to be needing to comment on.

 

[Slothrop]

Maybe Outrage is the new Grief?

 

[crackerjack]

Maybe Outrage is the new Grief?

Heh heh.

OTT reaction, but the BBC should've acted earlier and they might have avoided it. Ross & Brand are paid to act like idiots - no problem with that - but there are layers and layers of producers etc who stand between what they say and it going out on air. Anyone involved in 'signing off' on this - esp the producer who suposedly asked Sachs for permission, was told no, then braodcast regardless - deserves the sack.

(Of course it goes without saying the Daily Mail are scum, but it would be a big mistake to automatically side against them in this case, just because it's a good rule of thumb)

 

[Mr. Tea]

When I first saw the headlines I didn't know who Andrew Sachs was, and assumed he was CEO or something of Goldman Sachs, which would have been totally wicked. Turns out he's mainly famous for having been repeatedly whacked over the head by John Cleese.

Anyway, yeah, it was a shitty thing to do, but quite why Gordon Brown feels he has to stick his nose in is totally beyond me - isn't there a GLOBAL FINANCIAL MELTDOWN he'd be better off spending his time worrying about?

 

[craner]

It seems an awful shame that we won't get to meet Miley Cyrus on Friday night.

 

[crackerjack]

Anyway, yeah, it was a shitty thing to do, but quite why Gordon Brown feels he has to stick his nose in is totally beyond me - isn't there a GLOBAL FINANCIAL MELTDOWN he'd be better off spending his time worrying about?

At the risk of sounding too partisan, Brown was asked at a press conf. and spent about 20 secs and 40 words answering. he could've said, 'now to do with me, ask the bbc', but I don't think the GFM willl have deteriorate noticeably during the time he devoted to this case.

Cameron, otoh, weighed in uninvited and the Tories are now demanding a parliamentary debate. If there's any finger-jabbing to be done, aim it at the boys in blue.

 

[Mr. Tea]

At the risk of sounding too partisan, Brown was asked at a press conf. and spent about 20 secs and 40 words answering. he could've said, 'now to do with me, ask the bbc', but I don't think the GFM willl have deteriorate noticeably during the time he devoted to this case.

Cameron, otoh, weighed in uninvited and the Tories are now demanding a parliamentary debate. If there's any finger-jabbing to be done, aim it at the boys in blue.

Oh, fair enough, I didn't know he'd been asked about it.

 

[STN]

When I first saw the headlines I didn't know who Andrew Sachs was, and assumed he was CEO or something of Goldman Sachs, which would have been totally wicked. Turns out he's mainly famous for having been repeatedly whacked over the head by John Cleese.

NO! He's the voice of Monkey Magic and every single character in Svankmeyer's Faust. And I've fu... oh never mind.

 

[jambo]

It's right these so called 'entertainers' should be punished. This tasteless 'prank' could have a been a publicity disaster for the young ingenue's career as a burlesque dancer had Max Clifford not gallantly stepped in.

 

[mistersloane]

It's right these so called 'entertainers' should be punished. This tasteless 'prank' could have a been a publicity disaster for the young ingenue's career as a burlesque dancer had Max Clifford not gallantly stepped in.

Grandfather? I've decided to go into dance.

Oh that's nice dear, with Rambert?

No, the Satanic Sluts actually.

Oh that's nice dear, just make sure Russell Brand doesn't fuck you, because then I would be offended.


Fucking whores the lot of them, and not in the nice way.

 

[IdleRich]

I can't stand Ross or Brand and although the outrage thing is obviously ridiculous I can't help thinking that if someone must be on the end of such a thing it might as well be them. I actually get annoyed every time I hear how much money Ross earns even though I don't have a tv so I'm not paying for it. Thanks to this "crisis" it's been in the papers about three times a day for the last few days.
I do think it was a pretty nasty little prank though.

"(Of course it goes without saying the Daily Mail are scum, but it would be a big mistake to automatically side against them in this case, just because it's a good rule of thumb)"

Ha, funny you should say this, I actually read about it in my Gran's Mail and it was strange kind of feeling to find myself roughly in agreement with them.

"Maybe Outrage is the new Grief?"

This is spot on. Who are these people who suddenly get annoyed a week later and feel that they have to make the eight-thousandth complaint?

"It's right these so called 'entertainers' should be punished. This tasteless 'prank' could have a been a publicity disaster for the young ingenue's career as a burlesque dancer had Max Clifford not gallantly stepped in."

If Max Clifford is so good at PR then why does everyone think he's a cunt?
(nicked that from Viz I think but can just about squeeze it in here).

 

[mixed_biscuits]

Who are these people who suddenly get annoyed a week later and feel that they have to make the eight-thousandth complaint?

Ah yes hmm complaints 8000 to ahem 11247 - they were me.

Ross and Brand are both mischievous little rascals - and like all little rascals, they enjoy a spanking every now and then.

Let's put this down as a spanking.

 

[Mr. Tea]

If Max Clifford is so good at PR then why does everyone think he's a cunt?
(nicked that from Viz I think but can just about squeeze it in here).

I imagine Clifford is the sort of person who doesn't care if people think he's a cunt, as long as they know he's a rich cunt.

(In fact he's probably so rich he needs a special Clifford algebra just to keep track of his current account...)

 

[jambo]

Like most right thinking people I couldn't give a flying Jonathan, but it was a bit of a mean thing to do to dear old Andrew Sachs who is justifiably considered a national Big Ben treasure for his racially dubious portrayal of a dim witted Spanish waiter. Just kidding. Outrage! Bong.

 

[mos dan]

always try to avoid developing an opinion on anything like this, then - as with the maddy story - unavoidably acquired one anyway.

brand and ross are both bullies. i don't mind obscenity at all but being a twat is not on.

the media reaction is a different narrative altogether really.

fav thing about it all, a new venture in genius tabloidese:

georgina baillie, sachs' granddaughter, is referred to as "manuel girl" in sun headlines. brilliant.

 

[Sick Boy]

It may be that I am nothing more than a callous, insensitive, juvenile sadist, but I can't see what the big issue is about this, certainly not enough of one for people to resign from their high profile jobs over, or, for that matter, for the prime minister to comment on.

I happen to like Russell Brand as a comic, and anyone that listens to his show knows that this stunt is really not anything unexpected, nor is it the most insensitive thing he has done to date (dressing up as Osama Bin Laden a day after the September 11th attacks on television).

It definitely lacked taste, but that's part of the appeal for me. It was clearly a childish prank, done clearly for the sake of humour, and it'd be a different story if I thought anyone had actually underwent any kind of real abuse. Andrew Sachs is 78 years old, not 10, and the most Brand and Ross did was suggest that Brand had slept with his grand-daughter.

I don't think that's something that is going to result in post-traumatic stress disorder (I suppose that depends on how much you hate Russell Brand), and neither did it sully the reputation of anyone involved, particularly, as has been mentioned, considering the young woman in question may already have done that for herself by joining a burlesque act called the SATANIC SLUTS.

Is Britain really wound up that tight? Has anyone ever listened to Howard Stern?
Well, nevermind, Russell Brand has resigned now and all is right in the world. Please continue to enjoy Wogan, for your fix of po-faced, dignified, British entertainment.

 

[nomadthethird]

I had never heard of any of these people until the Huffington Post had an item about this whole thing yesterday. Does seem like there's a ton of more important things to care about than the fact that some guy with really bad hair who seems some kind of British Nikki Six wannabe claims to have had sex with a burlesque dancer who happens to be related to a politician.

Are people so easily scandalized? What is the scandalous part? That the woman had sex or that she's a burlesque dancer? I can't figure it out.

 

[crackerjack]

Is Britain really wound up that tight? Has anyone ever listened to Howard Stern?.

And have you ever heard about Nipplegate?

[/QUOTE]Well, nevermind, Russell Brand has resigned now and all is right in the world. Please continue to enjoy Wogan, for your fix of po-faced, dignified, British entertainment.[/QUOTE]

I can't comment tyat much on American TV, obviously, but the notion that British telly is living in some Victorian straitjacket is hopelessly offbeam. Woss, in particular, routinely conducts interviews that if not graphically sexual, are definitely post-Whitehouse (and waaaaaaaay smuttier than anything I've seen on Letterman, or any Ameerican equivalent).

The BBC is also compromised (some might say fatally) by the license fee, a flat-rate tax raised on every household in the country that contains a fucntioning television, whether they use it to watch the Beeb or not. So the 'don't like? switch off' argument doesn't really wash.

Nomad - Sachs isn't an ex-politican, he's much more important than that.

who seems some kind of British Nikki Six

LOL at that.

 

[mistersloane]

Are people so easily scandalized? What is the scandalous part? That the woman had sex or that she's a burlesque dancer? I can't figure it out.

The scandalous part is that they dared to ring up a national treasure (one who is famous for playing the part of a racist stereotype in a previous 'comedy') and speak rude words into his answerphone.

It's the Conservative massive trying to get rid of the UKs most powerful entertainment liberal jew (Ross) as well as attacking the BBC - which they want to take out of public ownership. It's just the tip of the iceberg over here.

 

[crackerjack]

The scandalous part is that they dared to ring up a national treasure (one who is famous for playing the part of a racist stereotype in a previous 'comedy') and speak rude words into his answerphone.

It's the Conservative massive trying to get rid of the UKs most powerful entertainment liberal jew (Ross) as well as attacking the BBC - which they want to take out of public ownership. It's just the tip of the iceberg over here.

Ross is Jewish?