This Is Not On

Complaints, complaints, complaints

So RTE and pooch fancier John Ryan's baby Nightlive has come under fire from the Broadcasting Complains Commission who deemed that some of its sketches were 'in poor taste'.

The complaints specifically referred to one sketch about a celebrity charity appeal for leukaemia sufferers and another about a terminally ill boy.

“Such treatment of a child’s death is inappropriate and the manner and context of a child’s death went beyond acceptable standards,” it said. “The Commission was of the view that the humour was in poor taste and that it was likely to cause undue offence.

“The broadcaster did not exercise due care and the manner and content of the sketch were not appropriate or justifiable.”

Poor taste indeed - and many viewers seemed to think the whole affair was generally pretty poor - but was it really offensive to people suffering from such awful illnesses?

As far as we remember the offense was aimed squarely at media imbeciles and buffoons. In the first episode mentioned, the sports correspondent Trevor Corcoran laments his father's passing, "He never got a chance to see me drive Formula Ford at Mondello or caddy for me at Castleknock’s new golf course."

Shouldn't Trevor Welch be complaining instead?