Graham LOLnehan

[tomasrojo]

Personally, I don't think there was anything 'wrong' about such parodies in Father Ted. However, I'm not sure that the comparison works that well – and 'all the time' is stretching it a bit.

Good point.  My memory playing tricks on me.  I thought there were quite a few more.  There definitely was a really fine parody of "Twelve Angry Men" on the television show.  I don't think you mentioned that one.  Doesn't really bring the count up to "all the time" though! Must learn to read.

[Utter Shit]

I've met Linehan and he was a lovely, funny, self-depreciating man.
Maybe Twitter brings out the cunt in everyone, and that's why it shouldn't exist.

Even in interviews where he's generally light and cheerful (particularly the RHLSTP with Iannucci) he gets notably defensive and weird when Twitter is raised. He makes a joke of his tendency to just block anyone who criticises him - which in itself is an overly-haughty approach IMO, but it isn't even true because as we've seen so many times, often he doesn't block, he fights back. Only way more aggressively than needed.

[Kane Jones]

I've met Linehan and he was a lovely, funny, self-depreciating man.
Maybe Twitter brings out the cunt in everyone, and that's why it shouldn't exist.

He comes across as hyper-critical of his own work on the IT Crowd commentaries.  Really sticking the knife into himself if a joke falls flat or the writing isn't up to snuff.  Then he flies off the handle like a big baby if someone agrees with him. It's incredibly childish but sort of understandable.  It's alright for you to call your Mum a bitch, but it's a different story if someone agrees with you.

[Thursday]

Wasn't there that bit in that Father Ted documentary where they visit the house and he gets upset because some children pass by who say they didn't watch the show.

[amnesiac]

Wasn't there that bit in that Father Ted documentary where they visit the house and he gets upset because some children pass by who say they didn't watch the show.

yes! bloody hell.. he is flippin ODD isn't it? is this a wider Irish thing? are there any on here?

[Kane Jones]

Wasn't there that bit in that Father Ted documentary where they visit the house and he gets upset because some children pass by who say they didn't watch the show.

Haha, like Alan Partridge with the kids in the children's hospital on Knowing Me Knowing Yule.

"Do you watch the show?"
"No.  We don't know who you are."
"It's very rude to say that.."

[Old Nehamkin]

Wasn't there that bit in that Father Ted documentary where they visit the house and he gets upset because some children pass by who say they didn't watch the show.

As I remember it, Linehan and Mathews are talking to the family who live in the house about the show and one of the kids interjects saying he doesn't like it and thinks it isn't funny. It then cuts to Linehan and Mathews standing together outside acting affectedly prissy and mocking the kid's comedy taste in what I took as a pretty clear bit of piss-taking self-deprecation. I'm all for bashing Linehan's online thin-skinnedness, but I don't think there was any real hint of seriousness there.

[Utter Shit]

I'd have to see it again but I remember it more the way Thursday described it. Possibly with his reputation in mind though, might have a look again tonight.

[amnesiac]

I DEFINITELY remember it as real indignation and not staged and I'm pretty bloody good at sniffing those things out but we do need an independent person to watch it and tell us.

[Old Nehamkin]

Here is the bit. Judge for yerselves: https://youtu.be/AaP-d3cZDh0?t=8m42s

[Thursday]

He makes it into a joke to hide the pain!

I dunno in my memory there were kids outside the house they spoke to, so I'm not sure what to believe now.

[lazyhour]

Just watched it.

My view:

Spoiler alert

it's definitely mock outrage

[close]

[amnesiac]

we can conclude that it definitely happened, things happened, and time passed

[Utter Shit]

Yeah fair dos he did take it well.

[checkoutgirl]

yes! bloody hell.. he is flippin ODD isn't it? is this a wider Irish thing? are there any on here?

I'm Irish. Hope this helps.

[Ballad of Ballard Berkley]

He comes across as hyper-critical of his own work on the IT Crowd commentaries.  Really sticking the knife into himself if a joke falls flat or the writing isn't up to snuff.  Then he flies off the handle like a big baby if someone agrees with him. It's incredibly childish but sort of understandable.  It's alright for you to call your Mum a bitch, but it's a different story if someone agrees with you.

That's basically it. Graham Linehan is an incredibly sensitive yet acutely self-critical man whose neuroses are exacerbated when his work is criticised by anyone other than himself. It's a fairly common trait in artists. Thing is, most artists don't "take to Twitter" to confront their critics in an embarrassingly childish, self-defeating way.

He's obviously a nice, decent, talented chap, but he's also a walking advert for the deleterious effect of social media on cosseted, thin-skinned celebrities.

#SmokesPipeThoughtfully

[Noodle Lizard]

That immediate response of sarcastically shouting "GOOD FOR YOU! GOOD FOR YOU!" was a bit of an odd thing to do to a kid you've never met, simply because they said they didn't like the show.  They were probably sick of having a fucking film crew in their house, as well as fans constantly turning up to have a look.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hR5YNqE3K8

[Phil_A]

Just watched it.

My view:

Spoiler alert

it's definitely mock outrage

[close]

He makes out like it's just mock outrage, but in his head he's picturing that child's grisly, prolonged death.

[tomasrojo]

Continuing the theme of Twitter anger and twentieth anniversary:

http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/television/tv-news/rt-hits-back-as-father-ted-writer-accuses-it-of-being-a-joke-31173672.html

On the positive side, it's good to have on record that RTÉ didn't turn down Father Ted.  An amazingly resilient rumour in Ireland.

[Carpool Dragon]

Continuing the theme of Twitter anger and twentieth anniversary:

http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/television/tv-news/rt-hits-back-as-father-ted-writer-accuses-it-of-being-a-joke-31173672.html

On the positive side, it's good to have on record that RTÉ didn't turn down Father Ted.  An amazingly resilient rumour in Ireland.

He's absolutely right there though. The only decent comedy RTE ever produced is Paths to Freedom and fucking Soupy Norman. The Hardy Bucks series is a good example of how everything they touch turns to shit, because they're a company that values sleeveen-ery and nepotism over actual talent[nb]yes, this is true for a lot of the entertainment business but RTE really takes the piss[/nb].

[amnesiac]

gutted no one picked up The Walshes i bloody LOVED that show, my favourite LOLenham by a long way.

[Depressed Beyond Tables]

I don't know.

In a few years people will be beatifying Linehan for the stance he took with no-good reporters and Twitter tits.

It's the Cantona effect. Even the last *pope was heard to have said 'what a fucking kick to the chest'.

In perspective, it doesn't matter, you're still ultimately fucked.


_*Pontiff

[tomasrojo]

He's absolutely right there though. The only decent comedy RTE ever produced is Paths to Freedom and fucking Soupy Norman. The Hardy Bucks series is a good example of how everything they touch turns to shit, because they're a company that values sleeveen-ery and nepotism over actual talent[nb]yes, this is true for a lot of the entertainment business but RTE really takes the piss[/nb].

I rather like Republic of Telly (after it stopped being a carbon copy of TV Burp) and quite a lot of Savage Eye.  Irish Pictorial Weekly has good bits too.

What I remember of the mid-90s was extremely poor though, so he certainly has a point about the absurdity of RTÉ producing Father Ted at that time.  They couldn't even have afforded its relatively low production costs, apart from being neophobic.

RTÉ, like an awful lot of Ireland, suffers from sleeveen-ery and nepotism, as you say.  It certainly does. 

[Blinder Data]

Can someone please explain 'sleeveen-ery' (a new one for me) and its relevance to the commissioning process of RTE?

[tomasrojo]

Can someone please explain 'sleeveen-ery' (a new one for me) and its relevance to the commissioning process of RTE?

I think this is an ok explanation.
https://melhealy.wordpress.com/2015/01/23/sleeveens-gombeens/


Really a type of political manoeuvring and parochial corruption.

[Depressed Beyond Tables]

What's the proper spelling? Something like slíobhín, probably.

[tomasrojo]

"Slíbhín" is one spelling I've seen.

[Tiny Poster]

Slitheen.

[Queneau]

I always like to badmouth Linehan. I like to badmouth him now without justifying it. Partly because even if you do justify it he won't see it or understand it. Mainly I do it because I think he's a big cunt.

[Bobloblawslawbomb]

Did anyone see this? Linehan wading into a fairly innocuous public appeal fronted by shappi khorsandi regarding gender inequality in toys with the absolute worst internet argument of 'There are more important things to think about than this'.

Why does he do things like this? He will always have enough goodwill in the bank with me (unless he goes full gervais of course) but he just comes across the cunt in exchanges like this, especially after the quite earnest reply from khorsandi.

https://twitter.com/Glinner/status/791325201132773376