Jesus, this Russell Brand and Jonathon Ross "joke" is beng discussed in Parliament? [Archive]

Reigh Kaufman

10-28-2008, 01:16 PM

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7695951.stm

For those who don't live in the UK, Brand and Ross are two of the highest paid and most recognizable faces on TV (Ross is like Jay Leno, I suppose, whilst Brand, who has recently started acting, is a stand-up comedian). Both also have very high-profile radio shows for the BBC.

Now, if you can't be arsed reading the article, the controversy surrounds a series of prank phonecalls to the actor Andrew Sachs (most famous as Manuel in 'Fawlty Towers') which included lewd remarks about Sachs 23 year-old granddaughter (Brand claimed to have slept with her and Jonathon remarked that Sachs was now considering "killing himself" over sucha revelation). The calls were then broadcast on radio - 10,000 complaints and rising - and both presenters were forced to make public apologies.

Now it is being discussed in Parliament?

Seriously?

The prank calls were undoubtedly in bad taste, but politicians are asking that the BBC fire both men (which would never happen - they are just too high-profile).

What the fuck? Isn't there a recession to worry about? A war?

Idiotic.

Preston_79

10-28-2008, 01:29 PM

All over a few prank calls. How silly.

I thought Brand was gay. I guess he's bisexual eh?

Brand is one of those rare people that can entertain me and annoy me simultaneously.

Reigh Kaufman

10-28-2008, 01:38 PM

All over a few prank calls. How silly.

I thought Brand was gay. I guess he's bisexual eh?

Brand is one of those rare people that can entertain me and annoy me simultaneously.

Brand is not gay - he's one of the most notorious womanizers of all-time. He sought treatment for sex addiction.

He's has had more women than anyone since Elvis.

I don't get his apeal, but that's 'cos I'm a breeder.:p

Cronos

10-28-2008, 01:49 PM

Oh my how I hate this country. They've apologised repeatedly already, the last article I read on this matter stated the last call they made was an apology for the previous 3 as well (I've got no idea whether that's true or not, I've never listened to either's show and only found out about this thing when somebody told me)... sure what they did wasn't "right" but discussion of it should never have gotten into parliament, what a joke. I also find the number of complaints ridiculous.

Cosimo

10-28-2008, 02:26 PM

i don't think it was very nice what they said about poor manuel :mad:

these annoying chiefs think they can get away with saying whatevs. andrew sachs had brought more to comedy than the two boring music lovers ever will. their taste in music, comedy and film is so typical it offends me. brand thinks he is different because he likes the beat generation and the smiths :rolleyes: join the indie q already

hehe they are ok i guess but still don't pick on manuel

nah i don't like em much at all

BadCoverVersion

10-28-2008, 02:27 PM

Yeah, this is getting fucking ridiculous.

What they did was undoubtedly bad taste but C'MON, PRIORITIES!!!

I can actually see the BBC offing J.Ross...he's been getting a lot of bad press lately and his show is going to the dogs.

The Postmaster General

10-28-2008, 04:52 PM

Haha. This is like the ultimate getting called into the Principal's Office!

Cronos

10-28-2008, 05:00 PM

Just listened to this (it's on youtube), wasn't nearly as bad as it's been made out to be.

Tweek

10-28-2008, 05:05 PM

Fawlty Towers used to be my shiz...

I hope those two burn... :mad:

Nah, I kid. I kid. But good ol' PBS for showing it. :)

It's a bit weird that it's made such waves. I'm listening to it now. Sounds like a lot of dumbassery is all. I can understand why Sachs would be upset, of course.

JJFlamingo

10-28-2008, 06:02 PM

Gotta love a government in gridlock...:D

Zizou

10-28-2008, 06:05 PM

Now it is being discussed in Parliament?

Seriously?

The prank calls were undoubtedly in bad taste, but politicians are asking that the BBC fire both men (which would never happen - they are just too high-profile).

What the fuck? Isn't there a recession to worry about? A war?

Idiotic.

Idiotic? no. Other legislative issues, besides war and the economy, are also of national concern. If the MPs spent hours addressing the issue, you'd have yourself a point, but they hardly spent much time on it.

Brand has also commited similar offenses in the past, such as reading porn to his listeners of a Sunday afternoon show. There's a time and a place for that sort of thing. On the Friday Night show, with the recipient in on the joke too, it would be funny. During the afternoon, and traumatising an old man in the process, was too much.

Understandably there were complaints, and understandably MPs have been asked their views regarding the acceptability of a World wide received BBC radio show permitting something of that nature.

Reigh Kaufman

10-28-2008, 06:09 PM

Personally, JJ, I think this is diversion tactics by the government. Seriously. The government is under severe pressure at the moment, so they're doing the ol' Kansas City Shuffle.

Ree-goddamn-dickuless!

Reigh Kaufman

10-28-2008, 06:19 PM

Wait. You think prank calls - in bad taste, admittedly - are worthy of being the lead item on all the news channels and that, on the cusp of a recession, MPs should halt question time to discuss what a couple of entertainers did on a radio show?

They should be burning the midnight oil to sort out the economic crisis; they should be losing sleep over the deaths of our soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan; they should be sweating blood to end knife crime, education, homelessness, the NHS, pensions...

They should NOT be wasting time scapegoating a couple of idiots tittering down a telephone line. Particularly when the victim has accepted their apologies.

Ofcom are there for that sort of thing. Governments - or at least, my government - have better things to do right now.

Also, I'm not complaining about the length of time spent discussing it. I'm saying they shouldn't be discussing it AT ALL. It is a non-issue being used to distract the public from the real issues going on now.

chasingbanky

10-28-2008, 07:59 PM

Love J-Ross and Russell Brand, so I hope this doesn't hurt their chances of being on The Big Fat Year End Quiz... Goth Detectives for the win.

a7xfan

10-29-2008, 06:44 AM

its fucking pathetic, it's been front page on the sun for like a week allready.

they made a few jokes, so fucking what? did i miss the front page headline asking for fonejacker to be sacked.....nar.

i read the transcript of the conversation, and people are overreacting way too much, it got a few thousand complaints.....all from sad bastards, i hate this fucking country more and more each day, we have so many fucking idiots it's unreal...

BadCoverVersion

10-29-2008, 08:11 AM

The Grandaughter in question, little ol' Georgina Baillie a.k.a. Voluptua of the Satanic Sluts seems to be getting a hella lot of press attention. She's even got Max Clifford representing her.

http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2008/10/27/article-0-0243A465000005DC-912_468x718.jpg

And just so you know...Brand and Ross were both suspended pending investigation this morning.

Reigh Kaufman

10-29-2008, 08:55 AM

This is getting stupid.

Jonathon Ross and Russell Brand will NEVER be fired; nobody is fooled by this except Daily Mail readers and old people.

If they DID get fired, there is not a single network who would not pick them up immediately. And Russell Brand is hardly short of work at the moment. He has one of the biggest selling books this decade; an acting career; a stand-up career which sees him sell-out every venue; and he works for several other stations, including Channel 4.

Ross, meanwhile, is the biggest name in BBC (and probably UK) broadcasting, and has some VERY powerful friends.

The BBC are kidding absolutely nobody with this "punishment". Are you telling me that they will inform all the Hollywood stars for his late-night show, his film show, etc, that Jonathon will be unable to record this week's scheduled programming because he made naughty remarks about someone's granddaughter. (A stripper, as seen in Lady Version's post above).

They said sorry - they did not make the decision to broadcast it - they were silly - but they have both said and done far worse things on TV without being reprimanded.

It's a diversion. I'm not a conspiracy theorist, but the majority of people are not interested in how the FTSE index and bail-outs work, even though it will have a significant effect on our lives in the next few years. People are interested in celebrity culture, ergo: make them follow this pile of shit and they won't notice how fucked our country is at the moment.

Gordon Brown has a by-election (my fiancee's boss is the Labour candidate - nice man, good teacher) which he looks like losing in a few weeks.

Hmmm.

One more thing: Max Clifford, that fucking vulture, is representing Miss Voluptia of the Satanic Sluts? Well, that's strange: he's on Sky News defending Brand and Ross. Parasites and wannabes - I shit 'em.

BadCoverVersion

10-29-2008, 09:26 AM

I agree that the public outcry is beyond ridiculous...even my mum says they should be 'strung up' and she's fairly laid back and nowhere near as reactionary as your average Daily Hate reader!

It's hardly a prank of Chris Morris proportions.

DepartedLad

10-29-2008, 10:46 AM

Oh, Britain! T.he world is going to hell, and all you can do is worry about Manuel

FLAME_ON

10-29-2008, 01:15 PM

Zizou

10-29-2008, 03:47 PM

But let me try to figure this out... Russell Brand and another "Jay Leno" type of guy prank called some nobody actor and said Brand had sex with his nobody granddaughter; and now Parliament is getting involved?

Pretty much, except its not a no-name actor, it was Manuel from Fawlty Towers: "Mista Fawlty!".

Parliament barely got involved, they address many issues regarding Britain's current affairs (war, economy, sports, olympics, boris johnson's distasteful remarks, Prince Philip's distasteful remarks, the lot!).

I heard the call on youtube and although I found it really funny, the offensiveness didn't live up to what I thought it would be. Plus, they went about it fairly innocently... you could tell it was meant as a joke.

A joke to us, but we're all presumably not related to the little miss bossy boots in question. You have to put things in context, it was aired during the afternoon. Brand's done this sort of thing before, on one Sunday afternoon show, he read out porn to his listeners. I personally find it funny, but the World doesn't revolve around me. Parents, who's young children may have been exposed to the prank, would understandably be enraged.

Reigh Kaufman

10-29-2008, 06:08 PM

Besides knowing who Russell Brand is... I have no idea what is going on; Reigh Kaufman, I think you're only speaking to a few people around here.

But let me try to figure this out... Russell Brand and another "Jay Leno" type of guy prank called some nobody actor and said Brand had sex with his nobody granddaughter; and now Parliament is getting involved?
I heard the call on youtube and although I found it really funny, the offensiveness didn't live up to what I thought it would be. Plus, they went about it fairly innocently... you could tell it was meant as a joke.

Zizou is correct in saying the actor is not a "nobody". Andrew Sachs is an icon in British comedy, and still works as a narrator for many shows (he is old, see?).

I would also point out that the "Jay Leno" type is one of the biggest TV presenters in the UK - perhaps second only to Simon Cowell - and Brand is pretty much one of the biggest names in UK showbiz.

It may mean very little to people outside the UK, but imagine it this way: Jay Leno invites Bill Hader (or some other SNL alumni) onto the show and they decide to make a prank phonecall to John Mahoney from 'Frasier'. In this phonecall, both men make lewd comments about a female member of his family.

Sure, it's...unacceptable.

Unfortunately, however, the US government and the entire US media decide to talk about nothing else; 'Newsweek'; 'The Washington Post', 'USA Today'...even the respectable 'National Enquirer' (joke) demand that both men be fired...

It's the lead story on CNN, Fox and all other media outlets.

Imagine that? Well, that is how out of proportion this prank has become in the UK.

It's everywhere. And it wasn't even that offensive.

What it IS, though, is a prime example of how the media can be manipulated to distract us, and Bill Hicks would see through it for exactly what it is...

"Go watch American Gladiators...."

BadCoverVersion

10-29-2008, 06:28 PM

Zizou is correct in saying the actor is not a "nobody". Andrew Sachs is an icon in British comedy, and still works as a narrator for many shows (he is old, see?).

I would also point out that the "Jay Leno" type is one of the biggest TV presenters in the UK - perhaps second only to Simon Cowell - and Brand is pretty much one of the biggest names in UK showbiz.

It may mean very little to people outside the UK, but imagine it this way: Jay Leno invites Bill Hader (or some other SNL alumni) onto the show and they decide to make a prank phonecall to John Mahoney from 'Frasier'. In this phonecall, both men make lewd comments about a female member of his family.

Sure, it's...unacceptable.

Unfortunately, however, the US government and the entire US media decide to talk about nothing else; 'Newsweek'; 'The Washington Post', 'USA Today'...even the respectable 'National Enquirer' (joke) demand that both men be fired...

It's the lead story on CNN, Fox and all other media outlets.

Imagine that? Well, that is how out of proportion this prank has become in the UK.

It's everywhere. And it wasn't even that offensive.

What it IS, though, is a prime example of how the media can be manipulated to distract us, and Bill Hicks would see through it for exactly what it is...

"Go watch American Gladiators...."

Great work...this comparison is pretty much spot on.

FLAME_ON

10-29-2008, 07:12 PM

Thank you Reigh (and Zizou), the British media culture is basically a mystery to me, along with most Americans; which is sad because everything I am aware of is great.

But I totally agree with the distraction business and the Bill Hicks reference... the bigger shock is that people actually eat it up:
"In tonight's news, the economy continues to hit rock bottom with more signs pointing to a global depression. In other news! A puppy is found helping a bear find her cubs.. We now turn to Nancy Bruner for more on the story."
"Thanks Tom..."
Viewer at home: "Hey hunny, come see this! This little puppy helps a bear!"

What can you do??:rolleyes:

Reigh Kaufman

10-29-2008, 07:26 PM

Cosimo

10-29-2008, 07:36 PM

according to newsnight brand has resigned

i never listened to his show so i'm quite gutted :(

Reigh Kaufman

10-29-2008, 07:42 PM

Brand resigning is pure BBC politics. They sacrificed him because he basically only did the show for a lark. He has more significant work, and I wouldn't be surprised if he offered to take the fall for Ross. Ross, on the other hand, will not have to make any such sacrifices other than a week off.

Crimson_Regret

10-30-2008, 05:43 AM

In my opinion Georgina Baillie (The girl the prank was about) has come out of this looking worse...

She's milking it so much, going on and on about how offended and hurt she is and demanding they 'pay with their jobs'

Yes, if you're hurt and offended the first thing you do is an interview with The Sun :rolleyes:

Satanic Slut indeed.

Zizou

10-30-2008, 07:37 AM

Yah. The British print media are out of control. Unfortunately, the news channels are following suit. My friend is more erudite than me, so I'll let him speak.

Yeah, the media really are going crazy about this. I'm getting the distinct impression that their anger has less to do with the ethical nature of the prank and more to do with piling on the pressure to see a rival such as the BBC get hurt. Without Ross, the BBC would suffer quite a bit. The irony is that i'm sure all the other media companies would be quickly trying to hire him. Hopefully he'll stay with the BBC, I enjoy watching the Friday Night Show without adverts.

a7xfan

10-30-2008, 11:19 AM

pretty annoyed that brand had to quit over this shit, sure he has other work, but that anybody has to quit/lose their job over this is pathetic.

i read that it got 2 complaints on the night of broadcast.....then along came the daily mail, suprise suprise, the complaints shot up to 27,000. i hate the daily mail with a passion....cunts

Scorpio24

10-30-2008, 12:17 PM

I didn't expect to find this story on here. It's fucking infuriating i'll say that much.

I agree that the public outcry is beyond ridiculous...even my mum says they should be 'strung up' and she's fairly laid back and nowhere near as reactionary as your average Daily Hate reader!

Exactly the same here. And there seems to be no talking her down from the position.

Zizou is correct in saying the actor is not a "nobody". Andrew Sachs is an icon in British comedy, and still works as a narrator for many shows (he is old, see?).

I would also point out that the "Jay Leno" type is one of the biggest TV presenters in the UK - perhaps second only to Simon Cowell - and Brand is pretty much one of the biggest names in UK showbiz.

It may mean very little to people outside the UK, but imagine it this way: Jay Leno invites Bill Hader (or some other SNL alumni) onto the show and they decide to make a prank phonecall to John Mahoney from 'Frasier'. In this phonecall, both men make lewd comments about a female member of his family.

Sure, it's...unacceptable.

Unfortunately, however, the US government and the entire US media decide to talk about nothing else; 'Newsweek'; 'The Washington Post', 'USA Today'...even the respectable 'National Enquirer' (joke) demand that both men be fired...

It's the lead story on CNN, Fox and all other media outlets.

Imagine that? Well, that is how out of proportion this prank has become in the UK.

It's everywhere. And it wasn't even that offensive.

What it IS, though, is a prime example of how the media can be manipulated to distract us, and Bill Hicks would see through it for exactly what it is...

"Go watch American Gladiators...."

Great post.

You know what really fucking irritates me about all this. Alot of people OUTRAGED at the language will go to work all across factories and offices of Britain and use the exact same languaue or worse. The hypocrisy bothers me but what really fucking gets me down is how people are controlled by the media. The Bill Hicks nod is spot on.

The issue has become a joke. 150 people died in a an Erthquake yesterday and the papers fill the front page with this bullshit. Man the world need a fucking cull I swear to God. The worst 50% should be wiped out instantly. Starting with anyone who works for/or reads The Daily Mail

I should add while i'm a big fan of Wossy I can't stand Russel Brand he gets on my nerves. But still I did enjoy this......

Here's is response to the Daily Mail: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=EBpnEZyoQaw&watch_response

Also to add. All these fucking complaints? I think it's a fair point to say there would have been nowhere near that number had it not have been for the oxygen of publicity.

Zizou

10-30-2008, 04:03 PM

The issue has become a joke. 150 people died in a an Erthquake yesterday and the papers fill the front page with this bullshit. Man the world need a fucking cull I swear to God. The worst 50% should be wiped out instantly. Starting with anyone who works for/or reads The Daily Mail.

That earthquake doesn't really affect the lives of British people. Yes its obviously more tragic that some sensual satanic slut (who I want to put over my knee and spank =D ) having her private life aired by some prank. The BBC is partially funded with tax payers money through the tv license, so the whole BBC Radio 2 incident is more of an issue to us. Though it must be said, I can think of more than a dozen more important issues which do affect the British people.

The Daily Mail is the best! I love that paper. No newspaper gives you 100% facts, most of all news is an absolute lie, and with my special sunglasses I can see the true message: "obey", "consume", etc. (They Live). I read the Mail because it entertains me. Today I read about an incident which happened on Valentine's Day in 2006, a bride-to-be was on her way to buy a wedding dress but got run over by a one-eyed driver; the driver died of natural causes before he could stand trial; now the parents of the bride-to-be want all would-be-drivers to take a compulsory eye test by a DVLA approved doctor, instead of the honesty declaration which is currently in use.

FLAME_ON

10-30-2008, 04:59 PM

The fact that the BBC is funded by tax payers gives me a little more sense to this situation.
Of course I find what happened stupid. Hell, at my high school graduation party a couple years back, my drunk friends told my parents all of my nasty high school sexcapades... so I'm insensitive to people's personal lives being exposed. It's called biting the bullet and not giving a fuck.

But I can see why this is an issue if people found it offensive and yet their tax dollars are paying for it.

Scorpio24

10-30-2008, 05:53 PM

That earthquake doesn't really affect the lives of British people. Yes its obviously more tragic that some sensual satanic slut (who I want to put over my knee and spank =D ) having her private life aired by some prank. The BBC is partially funded with tax payers money through the tv license, so the whole BBC Radio 2 incident is more of an issue to us. Though it must be said, I can think of more than a dozen more important issues which do affect the British people.

And a prank call on a Raido station does? If that call affects peoples lives then they really need to start concentrating on something else.

My point was the media are suppsoed to be reporting news. And on a day when an Earhtquake has killed people, there's an ongoing war, people in America supposedly conspired to kill Barrack Obama and what do they put on the front fucking pages of all the news papers? This shit. It's just unreal.

Oh and like I said....It hadn't affected anybodies life a week and half ago save for two people. The media grab hold of it and run with it, and shove it down peoples throat and all of a sudden it's upset everyone including the precious grand daughter that's been in most of the papers half naked all week.

The fire needs the oxygen of publicity.

Honest to God if people are concerned by what is happening with our tax money they should be questioning the sheer weight of complete shit our money is paying for? Where is the good tv? Where is the smart writing and entertaining and challenging programes? Why the fuck are people concerned with a phone call? Answer: They wernt until the medai told them to be.

Fuck The Daily Mail and their shabby bullshit!

someguy

10-30-2008, 06:15 PM

Ross, on the other hand, will not have to make any such sacrifices other than a week off.

Well he's been suspended for 12 weeks now.

Reigh Kaufman

10-30-2008, 06:43 PM

Well he's been suspended for 12 weeks now.

Yeah, Brand is sacrificed, and the person in charge of - and turning Radio 2 into one of the most dominant stations in the UK - has resigned despite having NO knowledge of the incident ahead of broadcast.

They have shown a certain dignity; the BBC, meanwhile, is protecting Ross.

This will have zero effect on his career, with the exception of loss of earnings (but mark my words he will currently be producing work scheduled for broadcasting once the 3 months are up); his exposure in 3 months willl be through the roof.

Meanwhile, the Director General, who has already been through a number of scandals, is talking tough but REFUSING point blank to say that Ross will be fired.

Nobody should have been sacked (let's call it what it is), but they should at least be SEEN to be punished so we can all nod self-righteously.

BBC NEWS - 6.00pm - Lead item: duration of 16 minutes.

Sky News - 7.00pm - Lead item: duration of 14 minutes.

Channel 4 (the most worthy of our news programming) - Lead item - 9 minutes.

All other stories, including the earthquake and weather: approximately 14 minutes in total.

I didn't do this 'cos I'm some kind of conspiracy nut - it's for a media class I plan to teach - but that tells me there is something rotten in the state of Denmark.

darkface

11-01-2008, 04:51 AM

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/81/236408627_35a01eaeb2.jpg?v=0

This comes to mind when reading this article.

Muta

11-01-2008, 06:19 AM

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w40/tulihajni/manuel_que.jpg

Derrida

11-04-2008, 06:00 AM

It didn't take long for Brand to find another job - as Jack Sparrow's brother in the fourth Pirates of the Caribbean:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/celebritynews/3376282/Russell-Brand-to-play-Johnny-Depps-brother-in-Pirates-of-the-Caribbean.html

Reigh Kaufman

11-04-2008, 06:43 AM

Hmmm.

And Georgina Baillie is set to appear on Gordon Ramsay's show on Friday night.

Ramsay and Ross are friends.

Let's get this right:

Georgina has a MySpace link to Russell's show where he first bragged about having sex with her. (This is prior to the "prank call" to her grandfather). A week later, the call is broadcast but the naughty language is edited out (Ross shouting "He fucked your granddaughter" is not broadcast, for example; that only appeared in the transcript of the call published in The Daily Mail - a week and two complaints after the show). Georgina removes the link from her MySpace page after the story becomes huge.

Now, meanwhile, Georgina and her Satanic Sluts burlesque show is attended a month ago by none other than Jonathon Ross's wife (Jane Goldman; designer of risque attire, screenwriter, etc) who is invited backstage after the show. They discover that Jane's family are friends with Georgina's (ergo, Andrew Sachs) and - apparently - Jane offers to design some costumes for them.

Georgina hires a publicist.

Russell Brand has sex with her.

He brags about it on air - a week before he makes the call to her grandfather.

She puts up a link on MySpace.

The Daily Mail take the story and turn it into something huge.

Job done?

No. unfortunately, The Daily Mail readers are outraged and so the story snowballs. Brand quits. Ross is suspended. Georgina appears on Ross's friends show.

HHHHHHHHHHHhmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm?