Brand X

[caddyman]

After the MTV Awards, what a couple of months ago, now? I was rude about Russell Brand, who I called a tosser.

A fair number of people suggested that I was mistaken in my opinion and that he is a decent bloke and a clever comedian and that it shouldn't be held against him that a significant percentage of Americans didn't like his humorous stylings at the expense of Dubya.

Be that as it may, he's still a tosser and his prank phone call to Andrew Sachs proves it.

In the meantime, his companion in arms, Jonathan "Woss" Ross should be taken out and given a lesson or two in career development. His 'cheeky chappie' approach worked 20 - even 10 years ago, but now he's deep into his 40s, his tactile and lascivious approach to interviewing female celebrities has moved from being funny to edging on creepy, especially since the amount of TV make up he wears is beginning to make him look like one of the less tasteful drag queens out there.

Or maybe I'm just getting old. I dunno; it just doesn't seem funny to me anymore.

Edited to add: If anyone still cares, there's a transcript of the prank phone calls here.

Comments

Re: it's always about context

[barrettyman.livejournal.com]

The specific incident hasn't particularly angered me over and above the general trend it represents, but the fact it has dominated the news for the best part of a week is taking dangerously close to "Kelly Brooke washes car" the frontpage of the Sun the day of the Northern Ireland peace accord.

I have listned to his show on previous occasions and it is engaging and amusing. Russel Brand is not particularly nasty or vindictive, he just doesn't know when to stop, and the same can be said of Jonathan Ross. But it is the job of the producers to ensure that they if the cross the line they are told.

From previous comments it sounds like the

Re: it's always about context

[mr-h-r-hughes.livejournal.com]

I agree both normally have a 'straight man' to curb their excesses (RBs being his best mate a guy who as best mates are is generally great at chopping Russ down to size) so putting the two of them together, egging ach other on without a responsible adult was perhaps foolhardy. In fact the ringleader was in no way Brand but Ross who I think after years of Saturday morning broadcasting and biting his tongue seemed to go a little post-watershed demob-happy.