My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding comedian David Baddiel and Paddy Doherty are the latest stars to comment on the controversy surrounding Jimmy Carr’s Netflix special.
The ‘Eight Out Of 10 Cats’ star came under fire this week over a Holocaust joke that aired during his latest comedy special and was branded by viewers as ‘disgusting’ and ‘grotesque’.
The show, titled His Dark Material, was released on Netflix on Christmas Day and has now garnered widespread attention after a clip was released and shared online in which he claimed a positive of the Holocaust was the deaths of thousands of Gypsies.
During the show, Carr referenced the number of Gypsies killed in the Holocaust and how nobody ever talks about it.
The punch line then contained a derogatory remark about the deaths of gypsies at the hands of the Nazis.
Anti-hate groups, including the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust and Hope Not Hate, have criticized Carr for his comments about the Gypsy, Roma and Traveler communities, and a petition has even urged Netflix to remove such segments from the show.
Baddiel is the latest to join the debate after tweeting that Holocaust jokes can be one of two things: Cornwall Live Reports.
He said they are either “cruel and inhuman and mean and racist,” or they can target oppressors and call attention to the “fundamental evil of it” while “shedding a light on the humanity of the victims.”
The 57-year-old, whose mother was a Jewish refugee, said Carr’s controversial joke was “the former”.
He also shared a historic tweet of his praising a Holocaust joke by Devorah Baum, author of Feeling Jewish: A Book for Just About Everyone, which, unlike Carrs, was “defensible.”
Meanwhile, Mr Doherty, who is also famous for his appearance on Celebrity Big Brother, joined in criticizing Carr for the “disturbing” joke. according to North Wales Live.
He branded the comedian’s joke “disgusting” and “on a different level.”
“How this guy turned that into a joke is disgusting, it’s another level,” he said.
“Travellers are the most hated people on the planet and what have we ever done to anyone I don’t know.
“I’m really, really disgusted”.
Earlier this week, Holocaust Memorial Day Trust executive director Olivia Marks-Woldman said: “We are absolutely appalled by Jimmy Carr’s comment about the persecution Roma and Sinti are facing under Nazi oppression and appalled that his Remarks stormy laughter ensued.
“Hundreds of thousands of Roma and Sinti have suffered prejudice, forced labour, sterilization and mass murder simply because of their identity – these are no mockery experiences.”
The Traveler Movement, a charity that supports travelers in the UK and started the petition calling for the segment to be removed, said: “This is really disturbing and goes well beyond humour.”
In a tweet, the charity said: “We need all your support to call this out #StopTravellerHate @StopFundingHate.”
the petition describes Carr’s words as “nothing short of a celebration of genocide” and has garnered more than 7,000 signatures.
Netflix, which was asked to remove the special, declined to comment. Carr has also not commented.
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