...says its star James Buckley

Inbetweeners actor James Buckley has become the latest star to say that the easily offended are stifling comedy.

The 31-year-old says that the ‘joke police’ means that the show which made his name would be received very differently today – even though it was made relatively recently.

Buckley, who also stars in Dave’s Zapped, said it is ‘cool to be offended’ – which means viewers would ignore the context of the ‘idiotic, ignorant, lads’ at the heart of the hugely successful E4 comedy.

‘I think that when The Inbetweeners was around, everyone understood the context – that they were kids… that it’s not really their fault’ he told Digital Spy. 

‘Nowadays, it feels very black and white with comedy. There’s no in-between, it’s just, "This person said this on television – isn’t that terrible?" and it’s killing comedy, because you’re not allowed to joke about anything, it seems. There seems to be a joke police, nowadays.

‘I do think that possibly people would maybe be more offended by The Inbetweeners if it was to be made today, which is really weird, because it’s only 10 years. It’s only four years since we finished.’

The show ran for three series between 2008 and 2010, before returning for blockbuster films in 2011 and 2014.

Meanwhile, stand-up Gary Delaney has branded people who get offended at jokes as ‘idiots’.

‘To take offence at a joke you have to be an idiot,’ he told the Plymouth Herald in an interview to promote a forthcoming tour date in the city.

‘If people don’t like something, that’s fine, but it’s really not that important. The mistake they make is to take it seriously. I don’t like cheese – but I don’t try to boycott it. That’s ridiculous.

Published: 16 Oct 2018