Entertainment

RIP Bernard Manning





One of the UK's most controversial comics died yesterday, at the age of 76. For some Bernard Manning represented a racist pig who loved the attention of the controversy he caused with his Politcally Incorrect jokes. For others he was a comic genius who did tireless work for charity, and was just misunderstood. In my mind both are true, but why should anyone be bothered he made us laugh, and that is all that mattered.



The reason I have put the photo up I have is not to try to be offensive, it is to prove a point. Bernard Manning stuck a finger up to those in authority, and those that called him racist, he didn't care what people thought of him, he just wanted to make people laugh. But when are jokes not funny, should we really be worried about causing offence, and why do we now rather than years ago worry about what comics say?



Read on please...



When I was a lad I used to love watching Jim Davidson, another of the UK's controversial comics. He used to have is own show, and had a character called Chalkie on it, now chalkie was Jim Davidson's take of a coloured man of West Indian origin. Indeed he released a record using the voice called "White Chrissy mass". Did people care then? No we all had a good laugh, and I suspect so did 80% of West Indians.


But if he was to do the same today, there would be an outcry, in my huble opinion Political Correctness, has gone mad, and is ruining the country and yes OK the world.

Now have a look at this joke;

"There was an Englishman, a Cuban, a Japanese man and a Pakistani on a train. The Cuban throws a cigar out of the window, saying they are "ten-a-penny" in his country. The Japanese man throws a Nikon camera out, saying they are ten-a-penny in his country. Then the Englishman throws the Pakistani out the window. "

That was NOT a Manning joke, it was said at an after dinner speech by Ann Winterton, an MP in the cabinet, she had to resign after that.

There is no getting away from the fact that jokes are designed to be funny, they are not a means to be offensive toward certain races, they just reflect a way of life, and life in general. In the above example substitute "Swiss" for Pakistani, and the joke doesn't have the same impact.

OFFENSIVE WARNING!!

Some people may find the following jokes offensive, they are from Bernard Manning, and I think it shows how we stereotype people, which is what Manning played on.

"A Jewish doctor gave a man six months to live. The patient couldn't pay his bills so the doctor gave him another six months."

To an elderly man making his way back to his seat: "Was it cold in the ground this morning?"

"I once bought my kids a set of batteries for Christmas with a note on it saying, toys not included."

Yorkshire couple go to Majorca for their first holiday abroad. Being typical Brits abroad, they don't trust the local food, and as it's a Sunday they start cooking a roast dinner.

Unfortunately they've forgotten the gravy granules, so Maureen says to Geoffrey:"I'm sure the couple next door are English, go and ask them if they've got some"

So off he goes, knocks on the door, and sure enough a bloke in Union Jack shorts opens the door

Geoffrey asks politely: "Hast thou any Bisto??"

The bloke says: "F*!k off you Spanish t*!t"

Little pakistani bloke goes to heaven & knocks on the pearly gates

St Peter answers & calls out "Name?"

Mohammed

St Peter shouts out "Anyone up here call a taxi?"

I would say there is enough material there to offend a few people, but there is far far worse, and I don't want to be banned for putting up things that are more offensive. I have added a warning which I think should cover things.

The truth is though, no matter where you go there will ALWAYS be jokes that are offensive to SOMEONE, whether they are black, white, hispanic, jewish, gay, handicapped, whatever, but the comedien Frank Carson summed it up. "A joke is what it is a joke, made to make people laugh and people will always laugh beacause it's the way I tell em"