Outcry after Jo Brand jokes on BBC: Milkshakes? Why not throw acid at politicians!
‘Dangerous remarks’
THE BBC and comedian Jo Brand were accused of ‘inciting violence’ last night after she joked on air about throwing battery acid at politicians.
MPs called for the police to investigate the remarks, on Radio 4 comedy talk show Heresy. Miss Brand, 61, was responding to the recent trend for protesters to throw milkshakes at Right-wing politicians.
She said: ‘Certain unpleasant characters are being thrown to the fore and they’re very, very easy to hate and I’m kind of thinking, “Why bother with a milkshake when you could get some battery acid?” ’
Her words were recorded in advance and broadcast on Tuesday evening, meaning BBC producers decided not to cut them before the programme was aired.
The corporation – which is facing a furious backlash over its decision to scrap free TV licences for millions of pensioners – defended its decision not to edit out Brand’s comments, saying the show was meant to be ‘deliberately provocative’.
The remarks came almost exactly three years after Labour MP Jo Cox was murdered in the street while on the way to a constituency surgery
Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage, who was covered in milkshake during an EU election campaign walkabout in Newcastle upon Tyne last month, called for the police to investigate Miss Brand’s comments. He wrote on Twitter: ‘This is incitement of violence and the police need to act.’
Tory MP Priti Patel said: ‘There is no place in our society for the incitement of violence, intolerance or hate.’ Fellow Tory Charlie Elphicke said: ‘Jo Brand needs to understand these are not funny remarks. MPs, their aides and police have been murdered because reckless people who should know better have made poisonous and dangerous remarks like these, comments that encourage people to think that violence to MPs and others is acceptable.
‘We all still mourn the loss of Jo Cox. Hate speech like this has no place in our democracy.’
Another Conservative, Nigel Evans, said: ‘It’s appalling and even if she was trying to be funny this simply is in incredibly bad taste. Acid attacks are meant to maim and inflict life changing injuries of the worst order. It is sick.’
Andrew Bridgen said: ‘If it is a joke, it’s very badly judged and inappropriate and I can imagine the outrage if a politician said anything like that about Jo Brand.’
Pointing out that the BBC had failed to cut the remarks before they were broadcast, the MP added: ‘The comments have the full support of the producer and editor.’
Heresy, presented by Victoria Coren Mitchell, is in its 11th series. Produced by Miss Coren Mitchell and Daisy Knight for independent production company Avalon Television, it encourages guests to challenge established ideas and received wisdom.
Miss Brand followed her outburst on the show by saying: ‘That’s just me. I’m not going to do it, it’s purely a fantasy, but I think milkshakes are pathetic, I honestly do, sorry.’ At the end of the episode, Miss Coren Mitchell said she hoped Miss Brand’s remarks had not caused offence, but added that the series was intended to ‘test the boundaries of what it’s OK to say’.
She later responded to Mr Farage on Twitter: ‘Nigel! I’m genuinely disappointed; we don’t agree on everything, but I would totally have had you down as a free speech man. Especially when it comes to jokes.’
Broadcasting watchdog Ofcom said it had received 19 complaints. An online petition was started to have Miss Brand fired from the BBC but some fellow comics defended her. Lee Hurst said: ‘Jo Brand is a comedian. She has made a joke. You may not find it funny or you may find it funny. If you criticise her because you like her target, but defend other jokes of a similar nature against targets you don’t like you are a hypocrite.’
The BBC said: ‘Heresy is a longrunning comedy programme where, as the title implies and as our listeners know, panellists often say things which are deliberately provocative and go against societal norms but are not intended to be taken seriously.’ Scotland Yard said no investigation had been opened into Miss Brand’s comments.