Frankie Boyle
Encyclopedia
Francis Martin Patrick "Frankie" Boyle (born 16 August 1972) is a British
comedian and writer, well known for his pessimistic, often controversial sense of humour. He was a permanent panellist on Mock the Week
for seven series and has made guest appearances on several popular panel games including Have I Got News For You
, 8 Out of 10 Cats
, Would I Lie To You?
, You Have Been Watching
, Never Mind the Buzzcocks
(as guest host and team captain when Phill Jupitus
was unavailable for recording) and Argumental
, as well as writing for Jimmy Carr
's show Distraction
and Sean Lock
's TV Heaven, Telly Hell
.
, spending most summer holidays in Donegal
, Ireland
. He is of Irish descent. He has an older brother named John and a younger sister named Karen. He was educated at St. Conval's Primary School in Pollokshaws
, then Holyrood R.C. Secondary School
on Dixon Road, in Glasgow's South Side. After leaving school he attended Aston University
for a year before leaving and starting a BA
in English at the University of Sussex
. Whilst doing a teacher-training course in Edinburgh
at the age of 23, he began doing stand-up routines. He got his big break after performing at The Stand Comedy Club
in Edinburgh
, a venue that has also helped launch the careers of Stewart Lee
, Johnny Vegas
, Dara Ó Briain
and Michael McIntyre
.
. He has been referred to as the 'dark heart of Mock the Week by host Dara Ó Briain
. He is known for his morbid sense of humour
, which plays on negative images of society (particularly his country of birth, Scotland
), celebrities and politicians.
On 2 October 2009 he announced he was leaving the show to concentrate on other projects. It was announced to the public via Facebook on the Mock the Week fan page. Boyle has since criticised both the show's production team and the BBC Trust. He claims that the show did not cover enough major news stories and was too restrictive on his risqué comedy act, as the producers and the BBC Trust were afraid of "frightening the horses".
He returned to Mock The Week for his final appearance on the 2009 Christmas
Special which aired on 22 December 2009 as a series of best bits and festive clips. On 9 December 2009 he appeared as the guest host of Never Mind The Buzzcocks
.
Frankie Boyle's Tramadol Nights In October 2009 Boyle piloted a sketch and stand-up show for Channel 4
, entitled Deal With This, Retards to be produced by RDF Scotland subsidiary the Comedy Unit. Boyle mentioned on Friday Night With Jonathan Ross
that the original title of the show had been dropped, due to its potentially offensive nature. The programme was renamed Tramadol
Nights and aired from the end of November 2010. An official page launched via Channel 4's official website, which confirmed that the show's full name is Frankie Boyle's Tramadol Nights and the series was made up of six episodes.
Boyle has caused controversy with his on-air comments about Katie Price and her disabled son, Harvey.
was released, published by Harper Collins.
His second book Work! Consume! Die! was released in October 2011.
, a Scottish tabloid newspaper. On 26 June 2009, he reported via his MySpace profile that he had quit his newspaper column as "they refused to print any Michael Jackson
jokes." This message was followed by the article he wanted to be printed, which contained dozens of Michael Jackson-based jokes referring to the singer's health, childhood and paedophilia charges. Frankie Boyle now writes articles in The Sun, satirising the weekly news as he did previously on Mock The Week.
and some additional material, including a documentary about the tour, entitled Fuck You Scotland, and some sketches from the BBC3 comedy Rush hour
. The DVD was described by WhatDVD.net as "certainly not one to watch with your grandparents – not unless they are pretty open-minded!"
He has also featured in three DVD compilations of material from Mock The Week
. The compilations, entitled Too Hot For TV include material deemed too offensive for broadcast on TV and uncut versions of several full episodes.
Boyle's second live DVD entitled Frankie Boyle Live 2: If I Could Reach Out Through Your TV And Strangle You I Would was released on 15 November 2010.
magazine, co-written with comedian Jim Muir and with artwork by Michael Dowling. The story follows a Lex Luthor
-style newspaper magnate with a super-villain alter-ego. The strip appeared in the first four issues of CLiNT and is due to return in the future.
Boyle appeared on Real Radio Wales' weekly comedy show 'Comedy Nighthorse' on 19 October 2011.
on Mock The Week. The BBC ruled that the jokes were indeed "humiliating" and "risked offending the audience", whilst also calling Boyle "a brilliant member of the team". Despite this, Adlington's agent said that simply admitting mistakes was not enough, saying: "By giving Frankie Boyle a rebuke they fail to discourage others from doing the same." Adlington later went on to say she was hypocritical in making this complaint.
, Boyle found himself in the midst of a scandal when the BBC broadcast a Mock The Week repeat in which he made a joke about the Queen that was considered offensive. This caused many to complain about the state that the BBC had come to with Conservative
MP David Davies calling the joke a "disgracefully foul comment". Boyle was eventually cleared of any misconduct by the BBC Trust, although they called the comment "sexist and ageist". Despite the media backlash, fellow comic Dara Ó Briain
spoke out against the reaction saying: "not every TV show is for everyone".
spokesman Ismail Kaji said that the comments were "no different to bullying".
panel show Political Animal
in which he likened the situation in Palestine
to a cake "being punched to pieces by a very angry Jew". Boyle also made another joke where he said that he had "been studying Israeli Army Martial Arts. I now know 16 ways to kick a Palestinian woman in the back". In response, Boyle published a letter in which he criticised the Trust's "cowardly rebuke of my jokes about Palestine", before re-printing the jokes in question. He then criticised the BBC for not broadcasting a humanitarian appeal during the 2008-09 Gaza War, saying that it was "tragic for such a great institution but it is now cravenly afraid of giving offence and vulnerable to any kind of well drilled lobbying." Boyle then said that the situation in Palestine "seems to be, in essence, apartheid", concluding that he had reached this position after watching a documentary about life in Palestine that had made him cry.
were said to have been left "absolutely disgusted and sickened" by a joke made about Price's heavily disabled son, Harvey, that was made on Frankie Boyle’s Tramadol Nights
. On the show, Boyle said: "Jordan and Peter Andre are still fighting each other over custody of Harvey - eventually one of them will lose and have to keep him." Then he added "I have a theory about the reason Jordan married a cage fighter - she needed a man strong enough to stop Harvey from fucking her."
In a response, Katie Price's representative said "Harvey Price is a little miracle. Every day he overcomes so many difficulties and has so many battles to win due to his medical problems. I love him and am deeply proud to be his mother. If Mr Boyle had a tenth of his courage and decency, he would know that to suggest, let alone think funny, that Harvey may sexually attack me is vile and deeply unfair. Mr Boyle clearly has serious issues and those that give him a TV platform to say such disgusting things need to look at themselves very honestly."
Peter Andre's representative also responded to the comments made by Boyle and said "We're all disgusted by these comments. Peter is angry and very upset at Harvey being mocked in this way. Children, especially a disabled youngster, should be off-limits."
Both confirmed that they had sought legal action and wrote a complaint to Channel 4 regarding Boyle's jokes with Price saying: "To bully this unbelievably brave child is despicable; to broadcast it is to show a complete and utter lack of judgement. I have asked my lawyers to write to Channel 4." Ofcom
confirmed that Price issued a complaint and accordingly launched an investigation into the programme. In April 2011 Ofcom ruled Channel 4 had breached broadcasting rules by transmitting the material in question but did not require the network to broadcast an apology saying that it was "erroneous decision on a matter of editorial judgment on the broadcaster's part". Price criticised the decision not to require a broadcast apology.
with his partner, Shereen Taylor, and has two children: a daughter (born 2004) and a son (born October 2007). He has admitted that his career had caused him to neglect his family. He is a recovering alcoholic, having started drinking at the age of 15 and stopping at 26, and former drug user, who is now teetotal.
He is a follower of Noam Chomsky
and says that he has had a great influence on his political beliefs, claiming to be even more left-wing than Chomsky.
He stated in his autobiography that he supported Celtic Football Club as a child.
British
The word British is an adjective referring in various ways to the United Kingdom or the island of Great Britain and its people and language.People...
comedian and writer, well known for his pessimistic, often controversial sense of humour. He was a permanent panellist on Mock the Week
Mock the Week
Mock the Week is a British topical celebrity panel game hosted by Dara Ó Briain that launched in 2005. The game is influenced by improvised topical stand-up comedy, with several rounds requiring players to deliver answers on unexpected subjects on the spur of the moment.It is made by independent...
for seven series and has made guest appearances on several popular panel games including Have I Got News For You
Have I Got News for You
Have I Got News for You is a British television panel show produced by Hat Trick Productions for the BBC. It is based loosely on the BBC Radio 4 show The News Quiz, and has been broadcast since 1990, currently the BBC's longest-ever running television panel show...
, 8 Out of 10 Cats
8 Out of 10 Cats
8 out of 10 Cats is a television comedy panel game made by Zeppotron for Channel 4. It was first broadcast on 3 June 2005. The show is based on statistics and opinion polls, and draws on polls produced by a variety of organizations and new polls commissioned for the programme, carried out by...
, Would I Lie To You?
Would I Lie To You? (TV series)
Would I Lie to You? is a comedy panel game made by Zeppotron for BBC One. It was first broadcast on 16 June 2007.-Format:The show was presented by Angus Deayton in 2007 and 2008, and by Rob Brydon from 2009 onwards...
, You Have Been Watching
You Have Been Watching
You Have Been Watching is a British comedy panel game presented by Charlie Brooker, produced by Zeppotron for Channel 4 and filmed at BBC Television Centre and Riverside Studios in London. It first aired on Tuesday 7 July 2009, for a weekly eight-episode run...
, Never Mind the Buzzcocks
Never Mind the Buzzcocks
Never Mind the Buzzcocks is a comedy panel game television show with a pop music theme, currently without a permanent presenter. It stars Phill Jupitus and Noel Fielding as team captains. The show is produced by Talkback Thames for the BBC, and is usually aired on BBC Two...
(as guest host and team captain when Phill Jupitus
Phill Jupitus
Phillip Christopher Jupitus is an English stand-up and improvised comedian, actor, performance poet, musician and podcaster....
was unavailable for recording) and Argumental
Argumental
Argumental is a British improvised comedy panel game in which two teams captained by Robert Webb and Seann Walsh debate and argue on various topics. Sean Lock hosts the game. It is made by independent production company Tiger Aspect Productions for Dave and made its debut on 27 October 2008...
, as well as writing for Jimmy Carr
Jimmy Carr
James Anthony Patrick "Jimmy" Carr is an English-Irish comedian and humourist. He is known for his deadpan delivery and dark humour. He is also a writer, actor and presenter of radio and television....
's show Distraction
Distraction (game show)
Distraction was a game show that aired on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom from 31 October 2003 to 11 June 2004. Presented by comedian Jimmy Carr, the show involves contestants answering questions, while being distracted in various bizarre, painful and humiliating ways.Carr is aided by...
and Sean Lock
Sean Lock
Sean Lock is an English comedian and actor. He began his comedy career as a stand-up comedian. He won the British Comedy Award in 2000 in the category of Best Live Comic, and was nominated for the Perrier Comedy Award. He is also well known for his appearances on television and radio...
's TV Heaven, Telly Hell
TV Heaven, Telly Hell
TV Heaven, Telly Hell is a comedy television show on Channel 4, presented and produced by Sean Lock. The format is similar to Room 101, with guests discussing their likes and dislikes of items on television....
.
Early life
Frankie Boyle was born and brought up in GlasgowGlasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, spending most summer holidays in Donegal
Donegal
Donegal or Donegal Town is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. Its name, which was historically written in English as Dunnagall or Dunagall, translates from Irish as "stronghold of the foreigners" ....
, Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
. He is of Irish descent. He has an older brother named John and a younger sister named Karen. He was educated at St. Conval's Primary School in Pollokshaws
Pollokshaws
Pollokshaws is a district on the southside of the city of Glasgow, Scotland. The housing stock mostly consists of some sandstone tenement housing, tower blocks and modern brick tenement-style buildings...
, then Holyrood R.C. Secondary School
Holyrood R.C. Secondary School
Holyrood Secondary School, commonly referred to as Holyrood, is a Catholic secondary school in the south-side of Glasgow, Scotland. Holyrood is widely known as being Europe's largest state secondary school. It is near Crosshill railway station, Hampden Park, A728 and the new, M74 Motorway...
on Dixon Road, in Glasgow's South Side. After leaving school he attended Aston University
Aston University
Aston University is a "plate glass" campus university situated at Gosta Green, in the city centre of Birmingham, England.Established in 1895 as the Birmingham Municipal Technical School, Aston was granted its Royal Charter as Aston University on 22 April 1966...
for a year before leaving and starting a BA
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in English at the University of Sussex
University of Sussex
The University of Sussex is an English public research university situated next to the East Sussex village of Falmer, within the city of Brighton and Hove. The University received its Royal Charter in August 1961....
. Whilst doing a teacher-training course in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
at the age of 23, he began doing stand-up routines. He got his big break after performing at The Stand Comedy Club
The Stand Comedy Club
The Stand Comedy Club are three stand-up comedy venues in the cities of Edinburgh, Glasgow and Newcastle upon Tyne.-History:The Stand hosted its first regular club night on Thursday 21st September 1995: seven people came and the total box office was £22....
in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, a venue that has also helped launch the careers of Stewart Lee
Stewart Lee
Stewart Lee is an English stand-up comedian, writer and director known for being one half of the 1990s comedy duo Lee and Herring, and for co-writing and directing the critically acclaimed and controversial stage show Jerry Springer - The Opera...
, Johnny Vegas
Johnny Vegas
Johnny Vegas is an English actor and comedian. He is known for his angry rants, portly figure, high husky voice and support of St Helens rugby league club. More recently he has moved into dramatic acting.-Early life:He was born in St Helens, Lancashire, the youngest of four children of Laurence...
, Dara Ó Briain
Dara Ó Briain
Dara Ó Briain is an Irish stand-up comedian and television presenter, noted for hosting topical panel shows such as The Panel and Mock the Week....
and Michael McIntyre
Michael McIntyre
Michael Hazen James McIntyre is an English stand-up comedian. He is well known for appearing at many British stand-up comedy events and for several roles on television stand-up programmes such as Live at the Apollo and his own show, Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow...
.
Television
Boyle was a regular on the BBC panel show Mock The Week until October 2009, a show in which the panel comment humorously on various news stories from the British mediaMedia of the United Kingdom
Media of the United Kingdom consist of several different types of communications media: television, radio, newspapers, magazines, and Internet-based Web sites. The UK also has a strong music industry. The UK has a diverse range of providers, the most prominent being principle public service...
. He has been referred to as the 'dark heart of Mock the Week by host Dara Ó Briain
Dara Ó Briain
Dara Ó Briain is an Irish stand-up comedian and television presenter, noted for hosting topical panel shows such as The Panel and Mock the Week....
. He is known for his morbid sense of humour
Black comedy
A black comedy, or dark comedy, is a comic work that employs black humor or gallows humor. The definition of black humor is problematic; it has been argued that it corresponds to the earlier concept of gallows humor; and that, as humor has been defined since Freud as a comedic act that anesthetizes...
, which plays on negative images of society (particularly his country of birth, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
), celebrities and politicians.
On 2 October 2009 he announced he was leaving the show to concentrate on other projects. It was announced to the public via Facebook on the Mock the Week fan page. Boyle has since criticised both the show's production team and the BBC Trust. He claims that the show did not cover enough major news stories and was too restrictive on his risqué comedy act, as the producers and the BBC Trust were afraid of "frightening the horses".
He returned to Mock The Week for his final appearance on the 2009 Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
Special which aired on 22 December 2009 as a series of best bits and festive clips. On 9 December 2009 he appeared as the guest host of Never Mind The Buzzcocks
Never Mind the Buzzcocks
Never Mind the Buzzcocks is a comedy panel game television show with a pop music theme, currently without a permanent presenter. It stars Phill Jupitus and Noel Fielding as team captains. The show is produced by Talkback Thames for the BBC, and is usually aired on BBC Two...
.
Frankie Boyle's Tramadol Nights In October 2009 Boyle piloted a sketch and stand-up show for Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
, entitled Deal With This, Retards to be produced by RDF Scotland subsidiary the Comedy Unit. Boyle mentioned on Friday Night With Jonathan Ross
Friday Night with Jonathan Ross
Friday Night with Jonathan Ross was a British comedy chat show presented by Jonathan Ross. It was first broadcast on BBC One on 2 November 2001. The programme featured Ross's take on current topics of conversation, guest interviews and live music from both a guest music group and the house band...
that the original title of the show had been dropped, due to its potentially offensive nature. The programme was renamed Tramadol
Tramadol
Tramadol hydrochloride is a centrally acting synthetic opioid analgesic used in treating moderate pain. The drug has a wide range of applications, including treatment for restless legs syndrome and fibromyalgia...
Nights and aired from the end of November 2010. An official page launched via Channel 4's official website, which confirmed that the show's full name is Frankie Boyle's Tramadol Nights and the series was made up of six episodes.
Boyle has caused controversy with his on-air comments about Katie Price and her disabled son, Harvey.
Books
On October 1, 2009, Boyle's first autobiographical book titled My Shit Life So FarMy Shit Life So Far
My Shit Life So Far is a comedic observational autobiography by comedian and topical panelist Frankie Boyle. The book details Frankie's childhood in Pollokshaws in Glasgow to his rampant teenage sex drive, and his first job, working in a mental hospital...
was released, published by Harper Collins.
His second book Work! Consume! Die! was released in October 2011.
Journalism
It was reported on 24 October 2008 that Boyle was to begin a weekly column in the Daily RecordDaily Record (Scotland)
The Daily Record is a Scottish tabloid newspaper based in Glasgow. It had been the best-selling daily paper in Scotland for many years with a paid circulation in August 2011 of 307,794 . It is now outsold by its arch-rival the Scottish Sun which in September 2010 had a circulation of 339,586 in...
, a Scottish tabloid newspaper. On 26 June 2009, he reported via his MySpace profile that he had quit his newspaper column as "they refused to print any Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
jokes." This message was followed by the article he wanted to be printed, which contained dozens of Michael Jackson-based jokes referring to the singer's health, childhood and paedophilia charges. Frankie Boyle now writes articles in The Sun, satirising the weekly news as he did previously on Mock The Week.
Live shows
In October 2007 Boyle embarked on a long stand-up tour of Britain, playing over 100 dates and enjoying a sold-out run that was extended through until December 2008. Boyle plans to quit stand-up before he turns 40, and has stated that he has written his final tour and plans to do more TV work after this. Boyle performed his final tour, entitled I Would Happily Punch Every One Of You In The Face between March and December 2010.DVD releases
On 10 November 2008 Boyle's first DVD was released, featuring a sell-out stand-up performance given at London's Hackney EmpireHackney Empire
The Hackney Empire is a theatre on Mare Street, in the London Borough of Hackney, built in 1901 as a music hall.-History:Hackney Empire is a grade II* listed building...
and some additional material, including a documentary about the tour, entitled Fuck You Scotland, and some sketches from the BBC3 comedy Rush hour
Rush Hour (TV series)
Rush Hour is a sketch show made by Zeppotron and shown on BBC Three during March and April 2007. The show featured several sketches centred around characters travelling to work, school or otherwise, therefore many of the sketches took place inside a car or bus. Several cult and up and coming...
. The DVD was described by WhatDVD.net as "certainly not one to watch with your grandparents – not unless they are pretty open-minded!"
He has also featured in three DVD compilations of material from Mock The Week
Mock the Week
Mock the Week is a British topical celebrity panel game hosted by Dara Ó Briain that launched in 2005. The game is influenced by improvised topical stand-up comedy, with several rounds requiring players to deliver answers on unexpected subjects on the spur of the moment.It is made by independent...
. The compilations, entitled Too Hot For TV include material deemed too offensive for broadcast on TV and uncut versions of several full episodes.
Boyle's second live DVD entitled Frankie Boyle Live 2: If I Could Reach Out Through Your TV And Strangle You I Would was released on 15 November 2010.
Podcast
In 16 July 2009 Boyle's first, and only, podcast was released. Entitled Mock the Week Musings, the podcast is a recording of Boyle testing the material he has written for Mock the Week to a London audience. Boyle comments on his material throughout and often informs the audience that certain jokes are not going into the show due to their reaction (or lack thereof), and the podcast carries an explicit content warning. The recording includes some audience interaction, with Boyle offering to test some of his new "put-downs" on the crowd.Comic book
In September 2010, Boyle began publishing his comic strip Rex Royd in the launch issue of CLiNTCLiNT
CLiNT is a monthly British comic magazine launched in September 2010 by Kick-Ass creator Mark Millar, and published by Titan Magazines. As well as comics from Millar it also includes those written by celebrities like Jonathan Ross and Frankie Boyle....
magazine, co-written with comedian Jim Muir and with artwork by Michael Dowling. The story follows a Lex Luthor
Lex Luthor
Lex Luthor is a fictional character, a supervillain who appears in comic books published by DC Comics, and the archenemy of Superman, although given his high status as a supervillain, he has also come into conflict with Batman and other superheroes in the DC Universe. Created by Jerry Siegel and...
-style newspaper magnate with a super-villain alter-ego. The strip appeared in the first four issues of CLiNT and is due to return in the future.
Other appearances
Boyle appeared as himself in the video game Grand Theft Auto: The Lost and Damned, in a stand-up routine at Liberty City's Split Sides Comedy Club.Boyle appeared on Real Radio Wales' weekly comedy show 'Comedy Nighthorse' on 19 October 2011.
Rebecca Adlington
Boyle managed to attract criticism in August 2008 when complaints were received after comments he made about British swimmer Rebecca AdlingtonRebecca Adlington
Rebecca "Becky" Adlington, OBE, is an English and British freestyle swimmer. She won two gold medals at the 2008 Olympic Games in the 400 m and 800 m, breaking the 19 year-old world record of Janet Evans in the 800 m final...
on Mock The Week. The BBC ruled that the jokes were indeed "humiliating" and "risked offending the audience", whilst also calling Boyle "a brilliant member of the team". Despite this, Adlington's agent said that simply admitting mistakes was not enough, saying: "By giving Frankie Boyle a rebuke they fail to discourage others from doing the same." Adlington later went on to say she was hypocritical in making this complaint.
The Queen
In October 2008, during the Russell Brand Show prank telephone calls rowRussell Brand Show prank telephone calls row
The Russell Brand Show prank telephone calls row concerned a series of voice messages that English entertainers Russell Brand and Jonathan Ross left on the answering machine of actor Andrew Sachs, which were labelled obscene by many media commentators and politicians...
, Boyle found himself in the midst of a scandal when the BBC broadcast a Mock The Week repeat in which he made a joke about the Queen that was considered offensive. This caused many to complain about the state that the BBC had come to with Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
MP David Davies calling the joke a "disgracefully foul comment". Boyle was eventually cleared of any misconduct by the BBC Trust, although they called the comment "sexist and ageist". Despite the media backlash, fellow comic Dara Ó Briain
Dara Ó Briain
Dara Ó Briain is an Irish stand-up comedian and television presenter, noted for hosting topical panel shows such as The Panel and Mock the Week....
spoke out against the reaction saying: "not every TV show is for everyone".
Down's Syndrome
Boyle's 2010 tour attracted negative media attention over a routine about Down's syndrome, after he received a complaint from audience member Sharon Smith, whose daughter suffers from the genetic condition. Her feelings about the routine were made public after she posted details of the event on her personal blog. Boyle's response to the incident on stage was to laugh and try and steer the topic back onto comedy, saying "Oh, well, it's all true isn't it?", later adding "This is my last tour. I don't give a fuck what people think." MencapMencap
The Royal Mencap Society is a charity based in the UK that works with people with a learning disability.-Profile:Mencap is the UK's leading learning disability charity working with people with a learning disability and their families and carers...
spokesman Ismail Kaji said that the comments were "no different to bullying".
Palestine and Israel
In April 2010, the BBC Trust's Editorial Standards Committee apologised for a joke made by Boyle on Radio 4BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
panel show Political Animal
Political Animal
Political Animal is a radio show hosted by British comedians John Oliver and Andy Zaltzman in which various stand-up comedians perform political material....
in which he likened the situation in Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
to a cake "being punched to pieces by a very angry Jew". Boyle also made another joke where he said that he had "been studying Israeli Army Martial Arts. I now know 16 ways to kick a Palestinian woman in the back". In response, Boyle published a letter in which he criticised the Trust's "cowardly rebuke of my jokes about Palestine", before re-printing the jokes in question. He then criticised the BBC for not broadcasting a humanitarian appeal during the 2008-09 Gaza War, saying that it was "tragic for such a great institution but it is now cravenly afraid of giving offence and vulnerable to any kind of well drilled lobbying." Boyle then said that the situation in Palestine "seems to be, in essence, apartheid", concluding that he had reached this position after watching a documentary about life in Palestine that had made him cry.
Harvey Price
In December 2010, both Katie Price and Peter AndrePeter André
Peter James Andrea , better known by the stage name as Peter Andre, is an English-born Australian musician, singer-songwriter, television personality and businessman. As a recording artist, he has achieving four top 10 UK albums and ten top 10 singles.-Early life:Andre was born at Northwick Park...
were said to have been left "absolutely disgusted and sickened" by a joke made about Price's heavily disabled son, Harvey, that was made on Frankie Boyle’s Tramadol Nights
Frankie Boyle’s Tramadol Nights
Frankie Boyle’s Tramadol Nights is a comedy sketch show created by Frankie Boyle, starring Boyle himself alongside Jim Muir, Tom Stade, Robert Florence and Thaila Zucchi.-History:...
. On the show, Boyle said: "Jordan and Peter Andre are still fighting each other over custody of Harvey - eventually one of them will lose and have to keep him." Then he added "I have a theory about the reason Jordan married a cage fighter - she needed a man strong enough to stop Harvey from fucking her."
In a response, Katie Price's representative said "Harvey Price is a little miracle. Every day he overcomes so many difficulties and has so many battles to win due to his medical problems. I love him and am deeply proud to be his mother. If Mr Boyle had a tenth of his courage and decency, he would know that to suggest, let alone think funny, that Harvey may sexually attack me is vile and deeply unfair. Mr Boyle clearly has serious issues and those that give him a TV platform to say such disgusting things need to look at themselves very honestly."
Peter Andre's representative also responded to the comments made by Boyle and said "We're all disgusted by these comments. Peter is angry and very upset at Harvey being mocked in this way. Children, especially a disabled youngster, should be off-limits."
Both confirmed that they had sought legal action and wrote a complaint to Channel 4 regarding Boyle's jokes with Price saying: "To bully this unbelievably brave child is despicable; to broadcast it is to show a complete and utter lack of judgement. I have asked my lawyers to write to Channel 4." Ofcom
Ofcom
Ofcom is the government-approved regulatory authority for the broadcasting and telecommunications industries in the United Kingdom. Ofcom was initially established by the Office of Communications Act 2002. It received its full authority from the Communications Act 2003...
confirmed that Price issued a complaint and accordingly launched an investigation into the programme. In April 2011 Ofcom ruled Channel 4 had breached broadcasting rules by transmitting the material in question but did not require the network to broadcast an apology saying that it was "erroneous decision on a matter of editorial judgment on the broadcaster's part". Price criticised the decision not to require a broadcast apology.
Personal life
Boyle lives in GlasgowGlasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
with his partner, Shereen Taylor, and has two children: a daughter (born 2004) and a son (born October 2007). He has admitted that his career had caused him to neglect his family. He is a recovering alcoholic, having started drinking at the age of 15 and stopping at 26, and former drug user, who is now teetotal.
He is a follower of Noam Chomsky
Noam Chomsky
Avram Noam Chomsky is an American linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, and activist. He is an Institute Professor and Professor in the Department of Linguistics & Philosophy at MIT, where he has worked for over 50 years. Chomsky has been described as the "father of modern linguistics" and...
and says that he has had a great influence on his political beliefs, claiming to be even more left-wing than Chomsky.
He stated in his autobiography that he supported Celtic Football Club as a child.
TV appearances
| TV Show | No. of Episodes |
|---|---|
| Mock The Week Mock the Week Mock the Week is a British topical celebrity panel game hosted by Dara Ó Briain that launched in 2005. The game is influenced by improvised topical stand-up comedy, with several rounds requiring players to deliver answers on unexpected subjects on the spur of the moment.It is made by independent... |
54 (excluding archive footage) |
| 8 Out of 10 Cats 8 Out of 10 Cats 8 out of 10 Cats is a television comedy panel game made by Zeppotron for Channel 4. It was first broadcast on 3 June 2005. The show is based on statistics and opinion polls, and draws on polls produced by a variety of organizations and new polls commissioned for the programme, carried out by... |
7 |
| Frankie Boyle's Tramadol Nights | 6 |
| Rush Hour Rush Hour (TV series) Rush Hour is a sketch show made by Zeppotron and shown on BBC Three during March and April 2007. The show featured several sketches centred around characters travelling to work, school or otherwise, therefore many of the sketches took place inside a car or bus. Several cult and up and coming... |
6 |
| Argumental Argumental Argumental is a British improvised comedy panel game in which two teams captained by Robert Webb and Seann Walsh debate and argue on various topics. Sean Lock hosts the game. It is made by independent production company Tiger Aspect Productions for Dave and made its debut on 27 October 2008... |
4 |
| When Were We Funniest? When Were We Funniest? When Were We Funniest? is a G.O.L.D. documentary series broadcast in 2008.-Format:G.O.L.D. wanted to ask the public which decade of British television they thought was the funniest, the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s or 2000s. Before the public voted G.O.L.D... |
4 |
| Never Mind the Buzzcocks Never Mind the Buzzcocks Never Mind the Buzzcocks is a comedy panel game television show with a pop music theme, currently without a permanent presenter. It stars Phill Jupitus and Noel Fielding as team captains. The show is produced by Talkback Thames for the BBC, and is usually aired on BBC Two... |
3 |
| Would I Lie To You? Would I Lie To You? (TV series) Would I Lie to You? is a comedy panel game made by Zeppotron for BBC One. It was first broadcast on 16 June 2007.-Format:The show was presented by Angus Deayton in 2007 and 2008, and by Rob Brydon from 2009 onwards... |
3 |
| You Have Been Watching You Have Been Watching You Have Been Watching is a British comedy panel game presented by Charlie Brooker, produced by Zeppotron for Channel 4 and filmed at BBC Television Centre and Riverside Studios in London. It first aired on Tuesday 7 July 2009, for a weekly eight-episode run... |
3 |
| Have I Got News for You Have I Got News for You Have I Got News for You is a British television panel show produced by Hat Trick Productions for the BBC. It is based loosely on the BBC Radio 4 show The News Quiz, and has been broadcast since 1990, currently the BBC's longest-ever running television panel show... |
2 |
| Live at the Apollo | 2 |
| News Knight with Sir Trevor McDonald News Knight with Sir Trevor McDonald News Knight with Sir Trevor McDonald, more commonly referred to as simply News Knight was a British television panel show shown on ITV, at 22:00 on Sunday nights. Fronted by Sir Trevor McDonald and in a similar style to the BBC One programme Have I Got News for You, its format featured three... |
2 |
| Burnistoun Burnistoun Burnistoun is a sketch show for BBC Scotland by the Scottish comedians Iain Connell and Robert Florence. The show is produced by The Comedy Unit.... |
1 |
| The Charlotte Church Show The Charlotte Church Show The Charlotte Church Show was a Channel 4 entertainment television show presented by Welsh singer Charlotte Church. It was first broadcast on 1 September 2006 and ran for 6 subsequent Fridays. The show was commissioned for a further two series, the first of which aired from 23 February to 6 April... |
1 |
| Friday Night with Jonathan Ross Friday Night with Jonathan Ross Friday Night with Jonathan Ross was a British comedy chat show presented by Jonathan Ross. It was first broadcast on BBC One on 2 November 2001. The programme featured Ross's take on current topics of conversation, guest interviews and live music from both a guest music group and the house band... |
1 |
| The Graham Norton Show The Graham Norton Show The Graham Norton Show is a British comedy chat show that is broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom. It was originally shown on BBC Two from February 2007 to May 2009 until it moved to BBC One from October 2009... |
1 |
| They Think It's All Over They Think It's All Over (TV series) They Think It's All Over was a British comedy panel game with a sporting theme produced by Talkback Thames and shown on BBC One. The show's name is taken from Kenneth Wolstenholme's famous 1966 World Cup commentary quotation, "they think it's all over...it is now!" and the show used the phrase as... |
1 |
Stand-Up DVDs
| Title | Released | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Live | 10 November 2008 | Live at London London London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its... 's Hackney Empire Hackney Empire The Hackney Empire is a theatre on Mare Street, in the London Borough of Hackney, built in 1901 as a music hall.-History:Hackney Empire is a grade II* listed building... |
| Live 2: If I Could Reach Out Through Your TV and Strangle You I Would | 15 November 2010 | Live at London London London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its... 's HMV Hammersmith Apollo |