BBC boss left squirming after awkward Mrs Brown’s Boys question

Your support helps us to tell the story

Support Now

Our mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.

Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.

Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.

Louise Thomas

Editor

Find out more

Jon Petrie, the BBC director of comedy, was unable to respond when he was asked whether he found Mrs Brown’s Boys funny.

Created in 2011 by Irish comedian Brendan O’Carroll, the BBC’s slapstick sitcom has been consistently panned by critics since its inception.

At an audience Q&A for the BBC Comedy Showcase at Soho House on Tuesday 18 June,  an audience member asked Petrie: “Can I ask, as comedy chief, do you actually find Mrs Brown’s Boys funny? And would you watch it if you didn’t have to?”

Petrie did not answer. The journalist who asked the question said: “I’ll take that as a ‘no’, then.” Petrie laughed awkwardly.

The host of the Q&A, Michelle de Swarte, swooped in and joked, “It’s a trap!”

She then moved on to the next question.

Later on in the event, Petrie said that Mrs Brown’s Boys is “still getting numbers for us”. He claimed the sitcom’s viewership ratings are similar to those of Not Going Out, Ghosts and Motherland.

open image in gallery

O’Carroll cross-dresses to star as Mrs Brown’s Boys’ titular matriarch, appearing alongside several of his own family members and friends.

The show ran for four series, which were followed by 22 Christmas specials. The UK viewing figures peaked at 11.4 million in 2013, but have steadily declined. The 2023 Christmas specials were watched by 3.67 million people.

In The Independent’s review of the most recent Christmas special, Sean O’Grady gave Mrs Brown’s Boys 0.5 stars, writing: “Like the trains, the NHS, consumer helplines, and virtually everything else these days, even Mrs Brown’s Boys doesn’t seem to work anymore.”

However, in January, O’Carroll promised to continue making the show despite the criticism it receives. He said: “As long as the BBC keep asking, we’ll keep making episodes. It’s down to what the BBC want and what we can plan around.”  

He added: “We are definitely making more specials.”

The next episode will be the show’s 50^th. The stage adaptation, Mrs Brown’s Boys D’live Show, will tour Ireland this November and December.