Ofcom investigates ITV 2's Dapper Laughs after receiving 99 complaints
Ofcom has launched an investigation into the final broadcast of ITV 2’s Dapper Laughs show after it received almost 100 complaints.
Dapper Laughs' show and tour has been cancelled
ITV 2’s ‘Dapper Laughs: On the Pull’ received 99 complaints from viewers, sparking an Ofcom investigation to see if Daniel O’Reilly’s character was offensive to viewers.
In particular, the watchdog will decide whether the show breached rule 2.3 of the UK broadcasting code, with it to deem whether the offending comments were contextually relevant.
However, with the 'Laughs' character designed to offer lewd and sexist dating advice to men, it may be unlikely the complaints will stand.
Last week ITV cancelled the second series of the show, after a petition signed by over 50,000 people, called for it to be canned in the aftermath of YouTube footage showing the stand-up telling a woman she was “gagging for a rape”.
This caused the comedian to ditch the ‘Laughs’ character, the controversy surrounding which - he claimed on Newsnight - “completely ruined everything”.
An Ofcom spokesperson told The Drum: "Ofcom is currently investigating whether the repeated use of sexual references in this comedy series met generally accepted standards."
The show, previously issued dating advice such as “Just show her your penis. If she cries, she’s just playing hard to get” and "remember, it’s only sexual harassment if she’s more attractive than you”. It concluded on 3 November.
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