h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Interesting article on the back page of the hate Mail today (i enjoy reading newspapers i fundamentally disagree with):

Apparently Big RoN Atkinson has resigned ITV after making a racist remark about Marcel Desailly after the Chelsea-monaco game. Ron thought he was having a private off-air conversation with clive tyldesly, but many countries picking up the ITV feed inadvertantly broadcast tyhe comment which was, apparently, a description of Desailly as "a ******* lazy, thick *******".

And here's an article from the Times- http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,27-1083614,00.html which confirms the two deleted words from above to begin with "F" and "N"

At least Atkinson did the decent thing and resigned. What I'd like to know is whether he regularly talked like that off-mic, and if so why did ITV employ him? Is it OK to be a racist there, as long as you're not caught?

I agree with everything in that post.

Yes, it's good that he resigned.

But if he id talk like that before, and ITV let it go because it wasn't broadcast, that wouldn't reflect very well on ITV *at all*.

I don't have a very high opinion of ITV. They're too much like a tabloid on TV. I don't always agree with what the BBC do, but I think on average BBC has got by far and away the better standards. Unless they sign up Ron Atkinson that is

Yet his record as a manager, and his brilliant West Brom side built around Regis, Cunningham and Batson their chance seems to indicate that maybe it's not as clear cut as it seems.

Apparently he also used the traditional derogatory terms for Italians and Spanish-speaking people to describe Ranieri and Veron, respectively.
And yet that's gone more or less unreported.

Strange how I was mentioning to Egon just now in another context that I went out with an Italian girl for about six years... and discovered through her that basically people can still be as racist or discriminatory as they like in this country - as long as it's a white person they're doing it to.

A point of view which, of course, doesn't make racism against non-whites any less odious.

"and discovered through her that basically people can still be as racist or discriminatory as they like in this country - as long as it's a white person they're doing it to."

*cough*Scousers*cough*

Racism of any kind gets my back up. Big Ron is actually quoted in the Mail saying that he was one of the first managers to give black players a chance in this country, but that doesn't excuse his comments and any other racially derogotary he may have used.

From http://www.footymad.net/leagues/loadfnws.asp?id=155433&teamno=356:

Atkinson also issued a statement whereby he apologised for his actions.

"There's no excusing it. I'm annihilated. This has been the worst day of my career and I've had a few bad ones, let me tell you.

"I can't even remember using the words I'm supposed to have said, but I understand some people heard them, so I can only offer my apologies. It was never my intention to upset anyone.

"After the match I just put down the microphone in front of me and I was so angry at the way Chelsea had thrown away their chance to win I started ranting away about it to no one in particular.

"I don't recall the language I used, but I was certainly complaining.

"It wasn't until I woke up next day and one of my mates called me from Dubai saying he was being asked about remarks picked up on tape that I knew something was wrong. It's not the kind of language I use and I'm astonished and very sorry at how this has happened.

"But nobody has been more involved with promoting black players in the English game over the years than I have been. You can go all the way back to Brendon Batson, Cyrille Regis, Remi Moses and Laurie Cunningham.

"I would never do anything to insult men like that, not deliberately anyway and I hope people remember this.

"I know there'll be some people who will want to slaughter me for a stupid remark no one should have heard. That's bound to happen. But all I can say is sorry. This has been a bad, bad day."

Last night they had the Room 101 with Big Ron on where he was saying some pretty err "old fashioned" things about women and cleaning ect...

I thought to myself crikey Ron you cant really get away with saying stuff like that anymore; funny in a way that this has happened the day after I though that...

Yes, I remember seeing that show when it was first transmitted and wincing a bit.

Not surprisingly, Ron's weekly column in 'The Guardian' has also come to an abrupt end: http://football.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/0,1563,1200707,00.html .

Interesting little snippet from that article Ormy linked to:

"But despite praise from black players he has worked with throughout his career, including some of the first black stars of the game that emerged during his tenure at West Brom at a time when overt racism was rife on the terraces, Atkinson has displayed signs of casual racism in the past.

"It was a great time. I think there's more racial prejudice now than there was then, though we used to make them sit on the back of the bus going to away games. We all used to laugh and joke about it. Cyrille [Regis] would say, 'If you don't stop giving me stick I'm going to buy a house next door to you'," he said in a recent interview. "

I raised an eyebrow at those anecdotes about the West Brom coach and Cyrille Regis too, but in fairness I think you have to remember that sensibilities were different then. I'm old enough to remember when racism-as-a-joke was considered totally OK, in TV shows like 'Love Thy Neighbour' and 'Till Death Us Do Part'. Ron is 65, and his attitudes are probably pretty typical of his generation of white Englishmen.

Which certainly doesn't excuse his latest outburst, but it does help to explain it.

you know, in this "everything at the same time" sense that Ron's Room 101 was mentioned in, the Daily mail has a page oN "Answers To correspondents", where people write in with questions and then someone writes back. Today, someone had written in wondering if it was true that "love Thy Neighbour" used to get viewing figures of 10m+ ,a nd the writer of the show erote in to confirm, and to argue that it wasn't at all racist, and he thinks it should be repeated.

In "Notes from a small island", Bill Bryson has a wonderful rant about that show, but I've mislaid my copy of the book, so i can't share, unfortunately.

I met Big Ron once in a motorway service station, so I regard him as 'a bit of a mate', despite the fact that he always talks utter drivel.

At least he's admitted his wrongs and got out with a shred of respect. He must be close to being pensioned off anyhow. And with any luck, we'll now see a bit more of El Tel on ITV.

B

'And with any luck, we'll now see a bit more of El Tel on ITV.'

Best place for him...

Hey psycorp, here's a quandary for you:

Imagine:

England reach final of european championships
Final is on both ITV and BBC
ITV have El tel analysing
BBC have Reidy

Which do you watch?

Neither, my voucher for my final ticket will be sent to me by the FA any day now, they've got my money for it.

Isn't that a rather extreme measure to go to to avoid watching former Leeds managers.

A hundred and twenty knicker plus plane tickets and beer money? Cheap at half the price to avoid Monkey Heed and Tel Boy Trotter.