Got something to say or just want fewer pesky ads? Join us... 😊

[Albion] Jim Davidson on Piers Morgan's Life Stories







Giraffe

VERY part time moderator
Helpful Moderator
NSC Patreon
Aug 8, 2005
26,456
I’ll be watching. I like both of them. And Jim has an “interesting” life story.
 




e77

Well-known member
May 23, 2004
7,267
Worthing
Bernard Manning had some very dodgy material but could actually deliver a joke. Putting choice of material aside I have just never found Jim Davidson funny.
 




BadFish

Huge Member
Oct 19, 2003
17,017
He was hugely popular in the 70s regardless of what anyone thinks......vividly remember my parents and their pals loving him. He was funny at the time, but things have moved on. You can’t judge his humour then on today’s standards - he wasn’t the only one doing stuff like that. Manning, Reid, Miller, Carson et al did stuff that would now be judged offensive at best.

Was seen as a ‘good bloke’ because he openly did a lot of gigs for troops. Up the Elephant and Round the Castle was a colossal pile of **** though [emoji23][emoji23][emoji23]

My parents had no time for him at all and pointed out that his comedy was full of hate for others based on very little. I recognised this to be true when I watched him myself. My uncle liked him though.
 


Buzzer

Languidly Clinical
Oct 1, 2006
26,121
My parents had no time for him at all and pointed out that his comedy was full of hate for others based on very little. I recognised this to be true when I watched him myself. My uncle liked him though.

I'm not doubting that but I think you're missing the point. Back in the 80s he was a TV A-lister because his brand of humour was extremely popular.

He's now almost universally sneered at so that must include a lot of people who appear to be in complete denial of their small part in his success.
 


The Clamp

Well-known member
NSC Patreon
Jan 11, 2016
24,289
West is BEST
Well that was fairly by the book. Can't say I learned much except that he isn't a person I would want to know personally.
 




BadFish

Huge Member
Oct 19, 2003
17,017
I'm not doubting that but I think you're missing the point. Back in the 80s he was a TV A-lister because his brand of humour was extremely popular.

He's now almost universally sneered at so that must include a lot of people who appear to be in complete denial of their small part in his success.

Maybe, or maybe people aren't sneering at him they just don't like or agree with what he represents any more? I can't really speak for them and don't particularly like making assumptions about other peoples opinions. All I know is that I never liked what he represented although i know plenty that liked him.
 


The Clamp

Well-known member
NSC Patreon
Jan 11, 2016
24,289
West is BEST
I think my Dad found some of his stuff funny but not much. My Mum couldn't stand him. I was too young so didn't get to watch his early stuff, I only ever really saw him on game shows. I don't find him remotely funny.
 


clapham_gull

Legacy Fan
Aug 20, 2003
25,179
I'm not doubting that but I think you're missing the point. Back in the 80s he was a TV A-lister because his brand of humour was extremely popular.

He's now almost universally sneered at so that must include a lot of people who appear to be in complete denial of their small part in his success.
But their were two Jim Davidsons in the 80s/90s.

He toned down his persona to present prime time shows - an early Bradley Walsh if you like.

However, his usual stand up routine was something you either had to see live or on VHS.

My point being that Jim Davidson was not popular in the late 80s/90s because of jokes about West Indians. That was the 70s.

He is sneered at now because after the money fell out of reasonably likeable prime time persona he became very bitter and reverted to type.

Sent from my LG-K520 using Tapatalk
 
Last edited:




Buzzer

Languidly Clinical
Oct 1, 2006
26,121
Maybe, or maybe people aren't sneering at him they just don't like or agree with what he represents any more? I can't really speak for them and don't particularly like making assumptions about other peoples opinions. All I know is that I never liked what he represented although i know plenty that liked him.
I'm sure that most people now don't like or agree with what he represented but for mainstream UK it was clearly at that time, their values and humour too.

Absolutely nothing wrong with not liking him but as I said, it's unfair to put all this abuse solely on him when it was the Great British public that loved his act so much that they made him one of the biggest names in TV in the 70s and 80s.
 


BadFish

Huge Member
Oct 19, 2003
17,017
I'm sure that most people now don't like or agree with what he represented but for mainstream UK it was clearly at that time, their values and humour too.

Absolutely nothing wrong with not liking him but as I said, it's unfair to put all this abuse solely on him when it was the Great British public that loved his act so much that they made him one of the biggest names in TV in the 70s and 80s.

I don't feel qualified to comment on why the Great British public fell out of love with him to such a degree. I just replied to another poster with my experiences of the bloke. Not really sure what you want from me to be honest. People have their own reasons for changing their mind about him, from the videos posted on this thread and another I started watching (couldn't continue as there was too much swearing and my kids are in the room) I suspect that it may be because he seems to refuse to move on and distance himself from his old act. But like i say i haven't followed his career in any detail so I don't know.

You think its unfair...... fair enough, maybe it is.
 


clapham_gull

Legacy Fan
Aug 20, 2003
25,179
I'm sure that most people now don't like or agree with what he represented but for mainstream UK it was clearly at that time, their values and humour too.

Absolutely nothing wrong with not liking him but as I said, it's unfair to put all this abuse solely on him when it was the Great British public that loved his act so much that they made him one of the biggest names in TV in the 70s and 80s.
Sorry, but he wasn't a prime time BBC saturday night star because of his act. He re-invented himself. He didn't do Chalky on Big Break or the Generation Game.

His racist blue standup was always a bit niche. Unlike Manning and the others he managed to maintain a non offensive prime time Jim whilst retaining the act live.

Sent from my LG-K520 using Tapatalk
 




Buzzer

Languidly Clinical
Oct 1, 2006
26,121
But their were two Jim Davidsons in the 80s/90s.

He toned down his persona to present prime time shows - an early Bradley Walsh if you like.

However, his usual stand up routine was something you either had to see live or on VHS.

My point being that Jim Davidson was not popular in the late 80s/90s because of jokes about West Indians. That was the 70s.

He is sneered at now because after the money fell out of reasonably likeable prime time persona he became very bitter and reverted to type.

Sent from my LG-K520 using Tapatalk

I think there's a lot of truth in that but I would still draw a distinction between him and the likes of Bernard Manning. I've nothing to back it up but I'd guess that most people only ever know Davidson from TV so probably making judgements from that. Even back then though we all knew Manning was being abusive and unrepentantly racist. I don't think Davidson was that kind of racist. He told racist jokes to an audience that found his type of racist jokes funny but most drew the line at Bernard Manning. Hypocritical, for sure but as I've tried to argue, Davidson just represented mainstream humour at the time.

Another comedian is Jimmy Jones who used to pride himself on being too rude for TV. I remember my step dad getting hold of a tape of one of his shows and it was outright racist, extremely misogynist. Jimmy Jones knew how nasty his jokes were and revelled in it. Just my opinion but it's Jimmy Jones and Bernard Manning rather than Jim Davidson who should be the hate figures.
 


clapham_gull

Legacy Fan
Aug 20, 2003
25,179
I think there's a lot of truth in that but I would still draw a distinction between him and the likes of Bernard Manning. I've nothing to back it up but I'd guess that most people only ever know Davidson from TV so probably making judgements from that. Even back then though we all knew Manning was being abusive and unrepentantly racist. I don't think Davidson was that kind of racist. He told racist jokes to an audience that found his type of racist jokes funny but most drew the line at Bernard Manning. Hypocritical, for sure but as I've tried to argue, Davidson just represented mainstream humour at the time.

Another comedian is Jimmy Jones who used to pride himself on being too rude for TV. I remember my step dad getting hold of a tape of one of his shows and it was outright racist, extremely misogynist. Jimmy Jones knew how nasty his jokes were and revelled in it. Just my opinion but it's Jimmy Jones and Bernard Manning rather than Jim Davidson who should be the hate figures.
I accidently attended a Jimmy Jones show in the 90s. I was working at a place which had a studio where he filming one of DVDs. On leaving work we were asked to stay since they didn't have an audience. I had no idea who he was.

Back to Jim Davidson his humour wasn't mainstream after the 70s and early 80s.

He continued to be a watered down offensive version of the others live but was canny enough to keep it off the TV and build a different career on it.




Sent from my LG-K520 using Tapatalk
 
Last edited:


Buzzer

Languidly Clinical
Oct 1, 2006
26,121
I don't feel qualified to comment on why the Great British public fell out of love with him to such a degree. I just replied to another poster with my experiences of the bloke. Not really sure what you want from me to be honest. People have their own reasons for changing their mind about him, from the videos posted on this thread and another I started watching (couldn't continue as there was too much swearing and my kids are in the room) I suspect that it may be because he seems to refuse to move on and distance himself from his old act. But like i say i haven't followed his career in any detail so I don't know.

You think its unfair...... fair enough, maybe it is.
Apologies then if it sounds like I'm having a go at you because I'm not at all. I've obviously not put my point across too well but it's late, I'm knackered and not trying to start an argument so let's leave it here.
 


BadFish

Huge Member
Oct 19, 2003
17,017
Apologies then if it sounds like I'm having a go at you because I'm not at all. I've obviously not put my point across too well but it's late, I'm knackered and not trying to start an argument so let's leave it here.

Fair enough. sleep well.
 






Herr Tubthumper

Well-known member
NSC Patreon
Jul 11, 2003
59,199
The Fatherland
Door stepping over members wife’s? Please explain

I don’t want to get drawn into this discussion as I have time for both [MENTION=33848]The Clamp[/MENTION] and [MENTION=31796]alfredmizen[/MENTION]. But it’s only fair to say the idea Frau Tubthumper was in any way “door stepped” or threatened is wrong. And I’ve said this before.

But if you want to draw the wife into this.... when I explained what had happened her response was “so you two have been goading each other on the Internet and now he wants to box your ears in, how ****ing old are you two?” I think she called it right.
 



Paying the bills

Latest Discussions

Paying the bills

Paying the bills

Paying the bills

Albion and Premier League latest from Sky Sports


Top
Link Here