Protesters are calling for Frankie Boyle’s scheduled appearance at Belfast’s Féile an Phobail festival to be cancelled, and let’s face it, they probably have their work cut out from them here.
“I was offended by a Frankie Boyle stand-up performance” is about as redundant a statement a human being could potentially make, given that that’s kind of the point of the comedian’s work. Needless to say, concerned parents are rallying against Boyle taking to the stage at the event, due to jokes he reportedly made during a 2010 stand-up show regarding people with Down’s syndrome.
Speaking to the BBC, Féile for Everyone member Johnny Lundy said: “This is a community festival. It’s part funded by public money, and it is seeking to mock one of the most vulnerable groups in our society. I object to my money being used to make my daughter and others like her the butt of his jokes.”
Protests were held outside Féile an Phobail’s offices, while those who objected to Boyle’s scheduled performance met with the festival’s organisers in order to discuss an outcome that would please both parties. While the protesters stated that they were happy with the results, a spokesperson for Féile an Phobail stated that the gig would still be going ahead.
2,000 tickets for the August 7th show have already been sold, with the comedian having not issued a response to the protests calling for the cancellation of his performance. Then again, considering how many times he’s been on the receiving end of the kind of mass hysteria typically only reserved for hate preachers, this is probably just another day in the office for a man who once said that the best anti-speeding advert would be to show a clip of Richard Hammond trying to remember his wedding shortly following the former Top Gear host’s near-fatal car crash.
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