I think it might be possible to define "chavs" as an underclass who largely rely on benefits, live on council estates and pop out child after child after child after badly behaved child. Yeah But No girl certainly fulfills those criteria, as does Catherine Tate's Am I Bovvered. I think Lenny Henry was talking about this recently, probably to distract us from the fact that he and his wife haven't been involved in anything remotely funny for twenty years.
re Lenny.
I'd disagree about Tate though. Lauren is a mouthy bitch alright, but I would have said more of a wannabe than a proper 'chav'. I honestly can't imagine that character popping out kids.
That Conservative councillor was right - benefit scroungers shouldn't be allowed to have kids!
GOuverenment term is NEET (not in employment education or training). Too be honest, it's not just the choices we make it's the choices we're offered in life.
I switched streams at school from the all fail GCSE stream, to the 70% pass stream and did ok.
I did work as a youthworker for a while, and I think alot of what we call chavs, are people who made bad choices, but in choices we were never offered.
I was reading at an early age, because my parents taught me, and there were books in our house to encourage me.
A lot of the kids I met in hostels, just didn't have a vision of a different future, then benefits/prison/poverty.
If you grow up in a house without a table, where do you do your homework?
I'd bring in 3 year none military national service, get every one on an equal footing.
There's no group that deserves to be ridiculed, and none that doesn't it either.
They deserve to be ridiculed when they cause such misery to the rest of society. And don't forget, the victims of the mouthy chav are often the old, the weak and the vulnerable. How often do we read news stories in which some poor bastard has been kicked to death by a gang of feckless baseball cap wearing wasters? Only this week there were some convicted of kicking the goth girl to death.
Those were teenagers, and thugs. What actually is a chav?
A lowlife scumbag.
The trouble is everyone seems to have a different definition of the word chav.
Quote: sootyj @ March 28, 2008, 10:27 AMIf you grow up in a house without a table, where do you do your homework?
Yikes. That's quite a sobering thought, Thanks sooty.
You avoid it like everyone else tries to!
Quote: Badge @ March 28, 2008, 12:27 AMAaah! Is he the Welsh fella? I'm more of the Noakes-Purves-Singleton era myself, and I could never bring myself to fantasise about any of them
I dunno - Valerie Singleton isn't that bad really. Even Jonathan Ross fancies her.
Quote: sootyj @ March 28, 2008, 10:27 AMThere's no group that deserves to be ridiculed, and none that doesn't it either.
Um - yes! I think I agree.
Quote: zooo @ March 28, 2008, 12:45 PM(the ''table'' quote of sooty's that didn't seem to work here on a repeat quote)
Yikes. That's quite a sobering thought, Thanks sooty.
Sorry to add more and a bit off topic but - if you are born to a heroin addicted Mother how long will it take you to re-assimilate to average values, expectations, etc. when your very early sentient and formative years were all experiences of poverty, police raids, violence, etc.
What realistic services are available to those individuals to help them lead productive lives and/or overcome early physical and mental damage of that, all too early, experience of our 'wonderful' world.
The answer, IMHO, is never, because despite both of the individuals I've encountered being well supported by caring extended families and genuinely having seen enough life in such a short time to be well rounded and nice people there are NO realistic services.
I don't mean to offend the other professionals that work with such young people but they will probably be the first to admit they are, nowadays, forced into spending more time on 'box-ticking' exercises, producing statistics on what they have (have tried to) achieve that the overall effect is not reaslistically going to have any effect.
We all pay for the failure and the aftermath.
Point?
CHAV, Black, Asian, Gay/Lesbian, etc. (sorry if you're an 'etc.') - all just convenient labels and of no relevence to individuals whatsoever. Still, sadly, a source of amusement. (I'm gonna qualify that later though cos I love laughing at myself!)
So why am I posting such heartfelt feelings on a comedy forum - well you started talking about various groups, some disadvantaged, and how they are portrayed in media comedy - ok? That is the influential industry many people here aspire to be a bigger part of isn't it?
Peace.
Bloody ... people! *shakes fist*
I haven't read all this thread, but I don't think it is racist.
The vomiting woman sketch is more a parody of little englanders, than an attack on black people. You're ignorant if you can't see that.
Attacking the chavs though, with Vicky Pollard, is somewhat classist. "Look at the idiotic working class" etc.
I don't know much Little Britain, so can't comment too deeply.
The only sketches in Little Britain that have made me wonder about racism are the Ting Tong ones.
And it didn't make me think David and Matt were racist, as I know they're not, it made me think some of the fans that were laughing would be laughing for the wrong reasons, and that makes me uncomfortable.
I just thought they were very, very unfunny.
Quote: zooo @ March 28, 2008, 11:51 PMThe only sketches in Little Britain that have made me wonder about racism are the Ting Tong ones.
And it didn't make me think David and Matt were racist, as I know they're not, it made me think some of the fans that were laughing would be laughing for the wrong reasons, and that makes me uncomfortable.
I'm with Zooo (if you'll have me). I don't think for a minute that Walliams and Lucas are racist, but I think the Ting Tong sketches are racist. Why? Because they come across to me as racist. And that's good enough for me. In fact, it's pretty much the only definition for me.
Others may disagree. That's up to you.
I never thought the vomiting woman was racist - just over the top in terms of taste. They could have done the same sketch and just as funny (in fact, more inclusively) if they hadn't soaked everything in projectile vomit.
