Jon Gaunt
So Jon Gaunt has been sacked from his hugely popular Radio show on Talksport.
It doesn’t seem to matter that Gaunty had the highest ratings from 10am-1pm. I’m led to believe that nearly 1 million listeners a day listened between 10am-1pm.
This is because he called a Redbridge counsellor a “Nazi” and an “ignorant pig” after the suit had told listeners that people who smoked shouldn’t be allowed to adopt children. What crap. I’m a non smoker by the way.
We all know that smoking is a filthy disgusting habit. The pubs and other social places are 100 times better since the ban came in, but now people are being told they can’t even smoke at home.
If you have read Jon Gaunts autobiography then you will know that his mum died when he was young, his dad couldn’t cope and put him into care. The stories that Gaunty tells are extremely personal and heartbreaking about his time in care. His heart is well and truly on his sleeve when this topic is mentioned.
What Gaunty was basically saying to the counsellor was that if you asked a child in care whether they would want to stay in care or be taken into a loving home by new parents who smoked what do you think the child’s response would be?
Would they say keep me in care because these 2 people smoke or would they like to be given a chance to live like normal boys and girls, have a Sunday roast and a chance to celebrate Christmas and Birthdays, things I imagine go uncelebrated in care homes. I think the answer is obvious.
The whole issue here is getting kids out of care and into families to give them a better chance in life, smoking shouldn’t even be an issue.
Gaunty let his emotions get the better of him as his past probably came back to haunt him. To him it probably felt like being in care again when a suit said no families for people who smoke. Took him back to hearing the door slam as his dad left the care home and left him all alone. He spoke up for the kids in care and if anyone should know what they would say it would be him as he has been there.
The counsellor accepted an apology and Gaunty adjusted it to from Nazi to “Health Nazi” and after an apology on air after his show that should have been the last of it.
Talksport received a few complaints but then they probably do every day, in fact they used to make adverts saying listen to Britain’s most controversial DJ on this station. They used the 48 complaints last year to promote Gaunty and have now used the few he got last week to sack him. How hypercritical is that?
I don’t know what’s going on at Talksport towers lately. I do know that have got a new owner who saw fit to sack Mike Mendoza & James Whale, both of which had the most listeners at the time when their shows were on air.
Whale was sacked for saying that we should vote for Boris Johnson instead of Ken Livingston at the London Mayor elections this year. Here is a man who has come through Kidney cancer but still came into work despite doctors orders not to.
Mike Mendoza didn’t have his contract renewed as the new owner thought he could get someone in better and that’s his prerogative but from what I have heard the listeners are voting with their ears.
All the personalities are now gone from Talksport, yes you still have Mike Parry, Danny Kelly, Hawksbee and Jacobs and Ian Collins but how long until they say something not PC and are fired?
Alan Brazil was recently convicted of drink driving when found way over the drinking limit. What’s worse? Telling someone to vote Boris or possibly killing people with drink driving? It’s a no brainer.
The world has gone PC mad lately. Yes Gaunty shouldn’t have called this bloke a Nazi but to him it felt like the counsellor was one. He should have said it to him in the ad break. Thing is if I know Gaunty he probably has something up his sleeve already. He will continue on his various TV programmes and still write his column for the Sun. The real losers are his 1 million fans. But one thing is for certain is that when Gaunty takes the reins on another Radio show expect 1 million listeners to flick over from Talksport to listen to him. As he keeps telling us, he has 3 sony’s you know!!!
update: 20/11/08 – click on the comments at the bottom of the page to see reply from Jon Gaunt himself!!!
John Sergeant
I have just been informed that John Sergeant who is currently wowing the public with his moves on BBC1s Strictly Come Dancing has stepped down. Why? Because the BBC and other dancers don’t want him there. They think he is belittling the competition.
What rubbish. The BBC have to realise that we the public pay for their shows and if we want to see some old bloke bust his moves on the dance floor then we will. We ring up and vote (paying more money to BBC) so we decide who we want to keep. Not them.
I watched it last week for the first time and all the poncy dancers who were in fear of going out were saying “Vote for the dancing not who you like or feel sorry for.” How patronising.
If they have to moan about something then how about moaning at Bruce Forsyth who they wheel out every year to present the show. His dreadful gags and not being able to read the auto-cue is painful to watch.
The public voted and they thought Sergeant was better than anyone else and voted for him in their thousands. The judges slagged him off and said him being in the competition was a joke. The joke was on them as the person they thought would fall at the first hurdle and be laughed of the show has won over the public.
OK, Sergeant isn’t the most light footed dancer to ever grace the dance floor but the public love the fact that he has got up and had a go. Remember the public decides not the BBC so why is everyone on the show moaning? If no one watched it and didn’t vote the show would be taken off air.
What’s even more impressive is that fact that Sergeant doesn’t have a sob story like most of the mob on ITVs The X Factor. This is another show where its decided by the public. Every week Simon Cowell says “Your vote has to be for the best singer.” If both these shows are not happy with the public’s views and the results they get from us then don’t get us to spend our weekends and money having the cheek to vote for who WE want. Pick them yourself and get of our TVs!!!
Posted under Other Stuff, Rants