London, UK: Channel 4 Forced to Apologize for “Distasteful” Sketch

The producers of Channel 4’s comedy series The Kevin Bishop Show were forced to apologize after community leaders and Holocaust survivors criticized one of the skits calling it “distasteful” and “disgusting”.

An episode of the program featured a skit entitled “Sophie’s Choice: the Musical”. This skit was based on the 1982 film which shows a Nazi officer force an Auschwitz inmate to choose which one of her two children will be executed: her son or her daughter. In this case the show was interactive, meaning that the decision was left to the audience, which voted on which child should live and which should die.

Reacting to complaints, the show’s executive producer Lee Hupfield told the Jewish News: “I am of course very sorry to hear that your readers were upset and offended by the “Sophie's Choice: the Musical” skit in the Kevin Bishop Show. It was certainly not our intention to cause offence to anyone. The skit sought to mock the tastelessness of modern West End musicals, with their use of inappropriate source material and gimmicks. It follows a tradition of satirizing stage musicals, as seen in The Producers (which included a musical about the Nazi party) and The Tall Guy (which featured a musical version of The Elephant Man). My apologies again for any upset this has caused your readers.”

Source: TotallyJewish.com, 07-31-2008

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