To ask what you feel about the complaints about Gavin and Stacey Christmas episode

[QueenViki]

Ness and Bryn were seen singing Fairytale of New York in the pub, which of course includes the word faggott (and also slut but nobody seems upset about that!). So there’s been complaints. I realise it’s a horrible word but in the context of the show it wasn’t intended in an offensive way and those characters aren’t known for being particularly politically correct. If the song is being played on the radio surely it will inevitably appear on tv unless it’s banned but then who decides what is allowed to be heard and what words we can and can’t deal with? Censorship always makes me a little uncomfortable but maybe some words need to be wiped out.

Only 11 people out of the 11.5 million viewers complained.

Wonder if anyone complained when Pam called Nessa a truck driving dyke in 1st series

I dont know why people are so up in arms about it. That's the song lyrics...
Do people complain when the same song with that lyric is played on the radio (genuine question, I know some radio stations blank it out)?
I dont think it's any worse than "slut" or "arse" in the context used.

I was far more bothered by Sonia (was that her name?) openly shaming Smithy over his weight!

I do love the irony with Pam’s lines though- she is horrified at Sonia’s comment but then talks about “Big Fat Sue!”

Snowflakes

It's an offensive word but not in the context of the song. Complaining for the sake of it.

Don't care!

Some people are just really bored

Show was great
It was ridiculous to complain
For a start that's the words to the song
For another thing it would have been out of character for the characters to miss out the words for fear of offending anyone

Some people just love being offended these days. ❄️

Bloody ridiculous!

Criticism was ridiculous but I'm not surprised by it. Some people look for things to be offended by. To complain about this word in this specific context is absolutely pathetic.

It’s an offensive word. It’s derogatory to a group of people and is used to shame them.

It’s meant to be offensive in the context of the song - the female singer is intentionally being offensive - but the lines between it being a word for a gay person or a nasty person are not clear. However when Nessa sang it, she didn’t mean it to be offensive. It was clear she sang it as it was part of the song lyrics.

However the BBC should have cut it/faded it out earlier without any controversy and saved themselves a whole lot of hassle.

Don’t be so ridiculous @Littlecaf

It's an offensive word but not in the context of the song. Complaining for the sake of it.

I didn't take offence at it, but the BBC could/should have just chosen a different song and saved themselves the drama.

However, it's also not a word I use irl, nor is it a word I'd tolerate the DC using.

It's probably the same as they thought on the other 3 threads about the same subject and same song

@GymBunny2020

Eh? Explain? Why ridiculous?

My mum's family were Irish and my mum often used to call me a little faggot when I was naughty. The word has only become a "bad" word since it became a derogatory word for a gay man.

People often seem to struggle with understanding characterisation, I observe.
For example I saw on Twitter a couple of years back a bunch of people tore into Robert Webb apart for his character using a homophobic or anti-trans slur on Peep show (the details escape me). He pointed out that his character Jeremy on Peep Show is hardly intended to be an upstanding moral citizen and that is exactly the sort of opinion he would have.

Similarly, the woman singing in Fairytale of New York - that Kirsty McColl was singing - is not intended to be an enlightened right on person. She was also singing it 30 years ago, in the context of an argument with her drunk partner.

And as has been pointed out here, the characters in Gavin and Stacey are kind-hearted but not metropolitan elite woke types. Those characters would not have thought to alter the words.

People need to suspend their judgement and understand that saying something as part of a character isn't necessarily and endorsement of that thing. Just like you don't have to agree with murdering children to play a child murderer, or with beating women to play a domestic abuser.

I worry about the state of critical thinking in our country.

I detest that song. Not because of the lyrics but because it's overplayed and his voice is so irritating.
I thought the scene, and the whole show was hilarious.

The scene was good for the joke with the word So.
The lyric should have been changed to the pp on here's favoured option:
You scumbag you maggot you taped over Taggart...

Didn't the programme show Gavin reacting to the lyrics as well, so it's not like it was passed without comment? I thought it was quite well done.

I hate that song.

I really can’t see what the problem is, it’s a song and those are the lyrics🤷🏼‍♀️ Some people blow things out of proportion.

@QueenViki
This is pretty much what I mean.

However it’s still a derogatory word. Was I offended? Nope. We’re my gay friends offended? Probably not.