Ricky Gervais Goes Anti-Woke

[Tony Tony Tony]

https://dailyuknews.com/entertainment/ricky-gervais-claims-tv-is-being-watered-down-as-fearful-execs/

Article strikes as being a bit second hand as it stems from an interview he gave to Lorraine Kelly (which I missed on account of organizing my sock drawer today) however the gist seems to be he is bleating that comedy, at least on mainstream telly, is being paralyzed to an extent as 'the woke' are infiltrating the nations TV execs psyche.

Does he have a point or is it next stop full Lozza Fox?   

[Oz Oz Alice]

This is news? He's been putting me to sleep for years.

[Famous Mortimer]

Of course he doesn't have a point. But I suspect you knew that. Going after the real reason mainstream TV is increasingly boring and anodyne (increased corporate control by increasingly conservative masters) would stop him from getting the occasional paycheque, though.

[Bernice]

A really interesting take from one of comedy's great theorists.

[buttgammon]

I'm amazed to hear this, all from a man who has worn the mask of IRONY so well.

[Jockice]

Edgy comedy. Dawn French. For fuck's sake. Two things that have never previously had any connection whatsoever in my mind.

[lankyguy95]

Oh another one of these threads.

[Tony Tony Tony]

Of course he doesn't have a point. But I suspect you knew that. Going after the real reason mainstream TV is increasingly boring and anodyne (increased corporate control by increasingly conservative masters) would stop him from getting the occasional paycheque, though.

Yep, I was being slightly disingenuous in asking if he had a point.

A reading of the full article pulls in Dawn French and Then Jimmy Melville as having suggested similar views to Gervais. The comments are being picked up in a fair number of news outlets, I'm waiting for the Daily Mail to feature it so I can see the comments it elicits, then I'll take a shower.

[Brundle-Fly]

I wish they'd give some examples of stuff the TV bosses were nervous about. Execs have always been jittery (especially after 'Sachsgate') What's new?   What does Gervais want to make that would be so contentious?

[ajsmith2]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ISCympuFDVU

[Poirots BigGarlickyCorpse]

"Goes"?

[Cuellar]

Is there anything this guy won't say?! He's totally fearless!!

[Poirots BigGarlickyCorpse]

Meanwhile a head teacher named Lee Hill was hounded off Twitter after Piers Fuckface found out he renamed his school's houses to people who aren't white enough for him, and had a screaming meltdown about it on television. But go off Pricky Fuck.

[lazyhour]

You literally can't move for super-progressive hard left 'woke' comedy on mainstream British TV. Like, here are just a few examples

[Claude the Racecar Driving Rockstar Super Sleuth]

I wonder how many of the people that say this sort of thing have seen It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

[checkoutgirl]

What does Gervais want to make that would be so contentious?

It can't be about Gervais, can it? All he has to do is fart in a jar, put the lid on it and Netflix will give him a cheque for 20 million. Derek got 2 series and Afterlife is getting a third I think. Similarly all his stinking film projects seem to get made. I haven't read the article or that but there's no way anything by Gervais has been refused, you just have to look at the quality of his output to see that.

It's probably the other way around. Gervais has nothing and gets approached by executives for something so he agrees and makes Derek and Aftelife on the back of a fag packet and they're pre-approved. Blank cheque Rick, make whatever you want.

[rue the polywhirl]

So the likes of Ricky Gervais, Dawn French and John Cleese are all crying out for edgy people, yet they all happen to be old, round and plump. They need to start being the change they want to see and start hitting the treadmill, get some edges on them and stop being so hypocritical.

[DrGreggles]

"Soon I won't be able to mock the disabled at all!"

[Ferris]

A shame, as I really valued his work before all this.

[Pink Gregory]

Gervais still thinks that new atheism is edgy.

[NoSleep]

Isn't he just echoing his "buddy", Jerry Seinfeld?

[idunnosomename]

you couldn't make it up! you can't make up anything these days! they'll put you in jail!

[Fambo Number Mive]

These days you do the dance and you get arrested and put in jail

[dannyfc]

I wonder how many of the people that say this sort of thing have seen It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

Would that air on the BBC? Maybe Channel 4?

I don't know if Gervais point was focused on just the UK, didn't bother to read it, but wonder if there's a general point to be made on the banality of British TV currently. Maybe it's always been the case, but between the 1000s of centrist panel shows and costume dramas it does feel piss poor currently. Maybe irrelevant to the woke debate, but still in the realms of execs and producers avoiding taking even the slightest risk. 

Without wanting to sound snobbish, the only things I bother with now are HBO shows and the odd Netflix docuseries. When was the last decent sitcom? Or even sketch show? Happy to be corrected if ive just missed the boat here.

[Pink Gregory]

Recent?

This Country
Detectorists
Ghosts
Out of Her Mind
Back to Life

Pre-pandemic anyway.  The last two deal with some fairly heavy subject matter as well.  Granted that's 5 shows and 10 series over 4 or so years so that's not exactly disproving your point.

[crankshaft]

Recent?

This Country
Detectorists
Ghosts
Out of Her Mind
Back to Life

Pre-pandemic anyway.  The last two deal with some fairly heavy subject matter as well.  Granted that's 5 shows and 10 series over 4 or so years so that's not exactly disproving your point.

Don't Forget The Driver
Murder In Successville
People Just Do Nothing
Pls Like
Derry Girls
Home
Fleabag
Back
King Gary
Sally4Ever
Camping
Mandy

etc etc etc

There are too many panel shows and no sketch shows for upcoming talent, that's for sure. But I keep seeing this myth that UK sitcoms are dead and, well, it's just not true. Could we do with more good ones? Of course. Are there currently none? No.

(edited to add - Gervais is a cunt who hasn't been funny since series 2 of Extras)

[JamesTC]

These days you can't even superimpose Kerry Godliman's face onto somebody without the woke police arresting you.

[big egg]

I read an interview with Simon Bird, where the interviewer, and I think Simon agreed, said that the Inbetweeners wouldn't get made today. I've seen that sentiment expressed in various things I've read about the Inbetweeners in the last couple of years, and I don't buy it at all. I think it needs a commissioning editor to explicitly say which bits of the Inbetweeners wouldn't fly in this day and age, because it seems like bollocks to me.

[Poirots BigGarlickyCorpse]

Whenever I hear that a comedian of a certain vintage is complaining about the wokes killing comedy, I can't help but feel like they're doing it because they know their past material has bits that today would be considered rude, dodgy or bigoted. It's easier to cry about PC cucks cancelling everyone for violating the Woke Agenda than to say "Yeah, that bit was dodgy, it's of its time, I wouldn't do a joke like that now".

Of course some of them are just shitheads who want to make fun of transgenders and disableds.

[madhair60]

I read an interview with Simon Bird, where the interviewer, and I think Simon agreed, said that the Inbetweeners wouldn't get made today. I've seen that sentiment expressed in various things I've read about the Inbetweeners in the last couple of years, and I don't buy it at all. I think it needs a commissioning editor to explicitly say which bits of the Inbetweeners wouldn't fly in this day and age, because it seems like bollocks to me.

I think he's right, because they have already made The Inbetweeners and to do so again would be a complete waste of time