Lolly Adefope has addressed her sarcastic standing ovation for Ricky Gervais at the National Comedy Awards, saying she “doesn’t regret it”.
The comedian attended the awards ceremony at London’s Roundhouse last February, where her show Ghosts was nominated for Best Scripted Comedy.
It lost out to Gervais’ Netflix comedy-drama After Life, and while Gervais was not there in person to receive the award, Adefope gave a mock standing ovation for the comedian, which many interpreted to be a critique of the show and of Gervais himself.
In a new interview with The Guardian, Adefope has spoken about the event, responding to reports that she had been “outraged” at the award.
“’Outraged’ – it’s always like I’m ‘raging’ at something, like I’m lecturing someone, like I’m really angry, rather than just being silly,” she said.
“I don’t regret making the joke. I’m not saying it’s easier for me, but I don’t have the same fear that a white person might have, which definitely holds people back from saying things.”
“There’s the fear of humiliation, or cancellation or being seen as wrong or prejudiced,” she continued. “Maybe this is too hopeful, but I feel like we’re kind of past that fear of cancellation now? We’re more willing to let people try. I don’t think the internet is the place to try to resolve things, but I’d prefer to say that I tried?”
Reflecting on whether she might have reacted differently to Gervais’ success ten years ago, she speculated that she might have tried to get Netflix to remove the special.
“Or maybe I’d have tried to convince everyone else how bad they were, and everything would be fine. But now I know, there’s always going to be an audience for that kind of comedy. So, it’s definitely more productive to just make more good stuff, encourage more people to write their own stories, so that those aren’t the archetypes of standup.”
“I don’t want to burn bridges with Netflix, obviously. But – it’s Netflix, they’re not my friends! They’re going to make the thing that makes the most money. I think we just have to make what we think is good. And hope that people receive the message we’re putting out rather than trying to fight to convince them.”
Adefope is one of the comedians that is set to serve as the opening act for Yard Act’s five-night residency at the Brudenell Social Club in Leeds. The concerts take place between May 8 and 12, with Harry Hill, Rose Matafeo and Nish Kumar also confirmed for the shows, as well as a top-secret special guest who is expected to come out of retirement.
Gervais, meanwhile, said in January that Netflix “can’t be arsed” to promote his new comedy special because it was set to be “huge” regardless. The show, named Armageddon, was released onto the streaming service on Christmas Day.
Ahead of its release, Gervais received criticism from a disability charity after using an ableist slur in the special. In the film, Gervais states he doesn’t “use that word in real life” and that he is “playing a role” for comedy purposes.
Recently, the comedian addressed a petition calling for a joke about terminally ill children to be removed, saying the majority of people are “not really offended”.
Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live, Gervais said: “People have a reaction. They don’t analyse it. They feel something – that’s what offence is. It’s a feeling. That’s why ‘I’m offended’ is quite meaningless. What do you want me to change?”
