Slow News Day ?

[mattx]

BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Brown speaks out over prank calls

Why is this BIG news ?

The country is facing recession, banks have almost gone bust, Mandelson & Osborne are up to the usual MP back hand dealing, Oil prices have dropped but petrol and energy prices are still high - but a prank phone call is the main headline news.
Steve Penk did it on capital years ago, The jerky Boys have been doing it for years in America, Radio 4's John Culshaw and others have done it on Dead Ringers tons of times - so why now ?

Bloody pathetic if you ask me. /RANT over

[ICT_GUY]

Agreed, wossy is the best thing on radio 2 at the weekend.

But then again no one is allowed to cause any offence to anyone any more. This makes me sad, as there is nothing more cathartic than really offending people you don't like.

[tech_guy]

Brand and Ross are a couple of complete p!llocks.

[laserblazer]

I've not listened to the offending material but if they did say some of the things reported then I think Andrew Sachs had a riht to be a bit miffed.

However, on the basis that there is no such thing as bad publicity, I wonder if he we will be seeing more of him on TV in the near future?

[WithoutMotive]

Don't know about you but I wouldn't be too chuffed if some naff celebrities left that kind of message on my voicemail... and then found out they did it live on air to millions of people.

[tom_newton]

I don't think it is relevant if what Brand/Ross did was unforgivable or not (I frankly couldn't care less) but the OP has it right - surely wee Gordie Brown has a bit more on his plate right now than a couple of tossers making prank calls? What next "Brown Comes Down Hard on People Not Returning Supermarket Trolleys to Designated Bays"?

[tech_guy]

What next "Brown Comes Down Hard on People Not Returning Supermarket Trolleys to Designated Bays"?

Good, idea and whilst they're at it - they can throw all the pr@ts who throw their fag ends out of their cars as they drive along in prison as well.

It's time we adopted a zero tolerance approach. I'm all in favour of living in a police state.

[WithoutMotive]

It's something to do with the BBC - a public broadcasting company.
Brown is BOUND to get involved.

If something like this happened on a commercial station we wouldn't hear a peep.

[ICT_GUY]

It's time we adopted a zero tolerance approach. I'm all in favour of living in a police state.

Oh but you already are.

[mattx]

Thing is, prank phone calls by the BBC and other stations have been going on for years. Anyone watch phonejacker on channel 4 ? 'Talk to me !!' Culshaw does it on Dead Ringers and did it with Steve Penk on capital years ago - it's nothing new - it seems odd that all his fuss is being made about it now.
It's all part of growing up and being British.....
Brown is getting a brown nose - just trying to score browny points with the public.

[tech_guy]

Oh but you already are.

Are we? [Cue door to server room being kicked in and armed policemen beating me senseless with their truncheons]

[torledo]

Brand must be doing something right if he's getting over a thousand complaints........nothing like a few comaplints to get listener numbers shooting through the roof, and now with comrade brown getting involved BBC radio execs must be laughing their heads off.

All because some people felt the need to complain about poor old manuel from fawlty towers being the butt of someones joke [proof that some things never change].....didn't Basil humiliate him enough!!! they cry.

And as for his granddaughter, it strikes me that someone who's supposed to be touring with an outfit calling themselves 'satanic sluts' wouldn't be terribly bothered by a lewd comment from a rentagob like Wossy. I'm sure she isn't and no doubt the publicity will do wonders for her modelling career......that and an unreserved apology would more than compensate.

The idiots who've blown this out of proportion win joint prize with the england cricketers for killjoys of the month. The wags seemed to be having a whale of a time with the multimillionaire sugar daddy of englands latest 2020 money making adventure. Never mind the cricketers being gobsmacked by seeing their wives and girldfriends enjoying the witty repartie of Stanford, i was gobsmacked when i discovered out how much they are getting paid for playing in a couple of 2020 games. Talk about rewarding mediocrity. As someone who subsidises these idiots by paying to watch cricket i'd like to see more wags sitting on laps as a pleasant diversion from the rubbishness of matt prior.