Gervais: Not Just Bigoted, But Lazy

Spoiler alert.

This show is a bit shit. But it’s possible you already knew that, or at least assumed I’d say it. The spoiler alert is really because I am going to give away most of the content of this gig, and quite a few punchlines too. I really don’t see any issue with that, because not only are these jokes and stories often genuinely offensive and lacking any insight or wit, they’re really dated too.

“This is a bit hack, but I’m leaving it in. To annoy people.”

Which people? The ones who’ve paid fifty quid a ticket to see jokes even the person telling them thinks are shit?

“This joke isn’t worth it for the punchline. The punchline’s shit.”

Why does he think it’s ok to charge people to listen to it, then? It’s not like he needs the money, god knows. And he does like to keep reminding us of how very wealthy he is, as if that’s some sort of justification. But cash changing hands validates a transaction. He is reiterating that sentiment when he tells the story of how treating paedophilia with sympathy means weaning paedophiles off kids by getting them to have sex with dwarfs. Yes, really. Because paedophilia is an attraction to people under four ft tall. There’ll be ‘free range dwarfs’ at the therapy centre, and it’s ok to abuse them because “they’ve been paid, so it’s consensual.”

That’s not how consent works, tho, is it? Just because you’re paying someone, it doesn’t mean you’re free to abuse them. This isn’t just the…