Ricky Gervais fought with Golden Globes lawyers over lewd joke about Dame Judi Dench

The comedian has hosted the awards ceremony five times
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Megan C. Hills6 May 2020

Comedian Ricky Gervais said he “had a blast” hosting the Golden Globes for the fifth time this year, however he had to sit down with an army of lawyers before finalising his blistering jokes.

Known for his controversial style of comedy and pointed digs at the most powerful people in Hollywood, he said the lines had to be approved by a “tough crowd” of lawyers and executives - who he then fought with over a joke about Dame Judi Dench.

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Speaking to Seth Meyers during an at-home version of his late-night show, he explained that he typically had to show his jokes to a lawyer “just to make sure that I don’t break the law or libel anyone or break taste and decency.” (He added, “I never have.”)

While many American awards show hosts have the luxury of workshopping jokes over a period of time with a team of writers, Gervais said that he can’t do that as he lives in London and normally just turns up “with a piece of paper.”

He said, “I've always read it to a lawyer an hour before and they’ve gone, 'Yeah, that's fine.'"

Gervais said this year was very different as he was asked to sit down with a group of lawyers and executives beforehand.

He said, “I don't know if that was they're getting more nervous about me or the times have changed. Obviously networks are very nervous, and this is prime time.”

Many of Gervais’ spiky jokes made it into the broadcast, including him making a paedophilia joke about the film Two Popes, an ISIS-related one regarding streaming services and more.

However, tensions came to a head over the way he had described Dame Judi Dench’s vagina in a joke about Cats, as the lawyers objected to the use of the slang word “m**ge.”

Gervais’ full joke related to Dench’s defense of the Andrew Lloyd Webber movie adaptation Cats.

He said during the Globes, “Dame Judi Dench defended the film because it was ‘the role she was born to play... Because she loves nothing better than plonking herself down on the carpet, lifting her leg and licking her own m**ge.”

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He also made a joke about furballs.

The lawyers and executives weren’t impressed during the read-through and Gervais says he had to fight to keep “m**ge” in.

He told Meyers, “The lawyers took issue with the use of the word "m**ge.”

Gervais tried to convince the lawyers that “m**ge” was a “British term, it’s a cute term, it’s not offensive at all - it’s not a swear word.”

However one of the lawyers then googled the meaning of the word, which came back with the definition that it was a “vulgar term for vagina” - which caused problems.

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He said to the lawyers, “Well all slang is a vulgar term, isn’t it? What do I do?”

In response, he recalled one suggested, “You could say vagina?”

“I went, ‘I’m not going to say vagina. That’s worse! That’s so clinical about Dame Judi Dench.’ And he went, ‘I take it back’,” Gervais continued.

He explained that he was “desperate” and said, “All I’m trying to do is get them to not bleep it, because it sort of ruins it.”

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After some debate over a better word, Gervais eventually won the argument.

“So I persuaded them that “m**ge” was fine... so we settle on m**ge and they said they wouldn’t bleep it,” Gervais continued, “but I knew they would. So I pointed.”

Gervais ended up delivering the gag during the Golden Globes, but just before telling it admitted to the audience, “I can’t do this next joke.”

Paul Drinkwater/NBCUniversal via Getty Images

He powered through and it shocked the room, as cameras cut to Gwyneth Paltrow looking around in shock as Marvel stars Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans were seen laughing.

He followed it up with an assurance that Dench was “old school.”

Gervais has hosted the Golden Globes five times, though he explained he initially said "no" to this year's edition. However, he told Meyers he was eventually convinced as he said, "They persuaded me through flattery and cash."

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