Comic Relief viewers were left ‘cringing’ by the annual telethon’s ’embarrassing’ Gladiator’s sketch during it’s 40th anniversary show on Friday evening.
The comedy scene featured actor Asim Chaudhry as his People Just Do Nothing character Chabuddy G and took on resident bodybuilder Bionic.
After beating his rival in The Duel, the character was caught to be cheating and was beaten up by the other Gladiators before farting.
Viewers branded the sketch ’embarrassing’ and ‘the most unfunny thing ever’ as they took to X to complain.
Writing: ‘That Gladiator sketch was a embarrassment. The Gladiators are modern icons and that’s what you producer! Waste’: ‘That Gladiators sketch on Comic Relief was the most unfunny thing I have ever seen, and that includes watching Mrs Brown’s Boys’: ‘Gladiators NO’: ‘What fresh hell is this’.
Elsewhere in the show left fuming after the annual telethon chose to show a 16-year-old James Corden sketch during it’s live show.
The actor, 46, played his Gavin and Stacey character Smithy in the comedy scene as he gave the England team, including David Beckham, a pep talk and originally aired in 2009.
Viewers were left unimpressed by BBC‘s decision to show the old clip when Red Nose Day is famed for it’s brand new comedy every year.
Taking to X they wrote: ’25mins into Comic Relief and they are already showing 15-year-old sketches’: ‘Good God, they’ve unearthed a 16-year-old sketch with Corden in a fruitless effort that a generation has passed and the current one may find amusing’.
‘I remember when Comic Relief used to be a huge night on telly when I was a kid. Watched for 10 minutes tonight and all it’s been is rehashed footage from previous years’: ‘Why are they just replaying old sketches when there is so much comedy talent in this country? somebody please explain?’.
Just hours before the show former footballer David, 49, shared his favourite Comic Relief moments from over the years.
Taking to X they wrote: ’25mins into Comic Relief and they are already showing 15-year-old sketches’: ‘Good God, they’ve unearthed a 16-year-old sketch with Corden in a fruitless effort that a generation has passed and the current one may find amusing’.
‘I remember when Comic Relief used to be a huge night on telly when I was a kid. Watched for 10 minutes tonight and all it’s been is rehashed footage from previous years’: ‘Why are they just replaying old sketches when there is so much comedy talent in this country? somebody please explain?’.
Just hours before the show former footballer David, 49, shared his favourite Comic Relief moments from over the years.
The star posed with his wife Victoria, 50, in a fun snap to mark the occasion with the pair both wearing Red Noses and the former footballer, 49, sticking his tongue out.
He also posted a series of throwback clips and pictures of some memorable Comic Relief skits in which he has starred.
One was a look back on the Beckham In Peckham scene, a 10-minute Only Fools In Horses special which aired in 2014.
It saw David Jason reprise his role as Del Boy in the classic comedy, as he was joined by iconic sidekick Rodney Trotter (Nicholas Lyndhurst).
The sketch involved the sitcom duo up to their old tricks and attempting to sell some underwear, on the recommendation of football star David.
It was all going well until the former England captain signed a ball for a local boy, which soon led to his cover being blown.
As David appeared to collapse to the floor, Del Boy and Rodney repeated their classic catchphrase: ‘You plonker!’
David was joined by Frank Lampard, John Terry, Ashley Cole, Peter Crouch, Rio Ferdinand, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Michael Carrick and David James on the receiving end of the actor’s wrath.
In a second clip from James’s appearance, David could be seen reading a Spanish newspaper – in reference to the footballer’s club Real Madrid – as the comedian gave him a haircut and painted his nails.
The duo, both sporting bath robes, then joined forces in making a flower arrangement before David gifted his pal a pink rose and James kissed him on the head.
An even older throwback involved a snap from their appearance on a special episode of Ali G in 2001, where they stepped into the firing line of Sacha Baron Cohen‘s iconic alter ego.
David captioned the post: ‘Beckham in Peckham [laughing emoji] I still can’t believe I was in an Only Fools & Horses episode… so many special memories of Red Nose Day over the last 40 years’.
‘Tune in tonight from 7pm (GMT) on BBC One and iPlayer @comicrelief #RedNoseDay @victoriabeckham’
On Thursday, Victoria posted a clip to her Instagram story of their youngest son Cruz, 20, singing the Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers hit Islands In The Stream while David cooked up a storm in the background.
Wearing a navy sweater with thin vertical cream stripes, Cruz added black tracksuit bottoms and sported a tan cadet cap – not dissimilar to the one his hero John wore while performing the album Help – backwards as he crooned away.
Meanwhile David seasoned the meat on the hob as he wore a white T-shirt with some grey sweatpants and sang along to the chorus of the song.
Victoria, out of shot but also heard contributing some vocals, captioned the post: ‘Casual…Dinner with the Beckhams.’
