Comedian Alan Davies Apologises Over Hillsborough Comments, Donates £1,000 To Justice Campaign

Chris Wright

10th, April 2012

30 Comments

By Chris Wright

“It’s Creek on the left, dips inside…”

Comedian Alan Davies has apologised over comments he made on his football podcast about Liverpool’s refusal to play on the anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster – a steadfast decision that has had the knock-on effect of leaving Chelsea with just three days between their game against Tottenham (Sunday 15th April)  and the first leg of their Champions League semi-final against Barcelona.

Davies argued, in a round-about way, that Chelsea should be given preference:

“Liverpool and the 15th, that gets on my tits that shit. What are you talking about, ‘We won’t play on the day’? Why can’t they? My mum died on 22nd August. I don’t stay in all day on 22 August.

“Do they play on the date of the Heysel Stadium disaster? How many dates do they not play on? Do Man United play on the date of Munich? Do Rangers play on the date when all their fans died in that disaster whatever year that was – 1971?”

“Every interview [Dalglish] has given this season he looks like he wants to headbutt the interviewer. This tight-mouthed, furious, frowning, leaning-forward, bitter Glaswegian ranting: ‘Liverpool FC do not play on April 15th.'”

“Hillsborough is the most awful thing that’s happened in my life, in terms of football. It’s one of the worst tragedies in English peacetime history. But it’s ridiculous that they refuse to play on that day any more.”

This, rather unsurprisingly, didn’t go down particularly well with some of the more tetchy elements of the Liverpool support. ‘Someone said something about Hillsborough that wasn’t 100% solemn and reverent? GET THE BASTARD!!!’

Davies later used his Twitter account to deny that he had been disrespectful to the families of those affected – let’s face it, he hadn’t – and that he was donating £1,000 to the Justice Campaign by way of penance:

“The tone I took on the podcast was inappropriate for this subject. I support the campaign for justice for the 96.

“I said the Hillsborough disaster was the worst event in modern peacetime history. I was on a terrace listening to a radio as it happened.

“Many disagree but I feel that the Liverpool v Everton semi-final could be played on Apr 15th. Apologies to those upset by that situation.”

This being Twitter, Davies also revealed that he’s received death threats for making what was essentially a wholly reasonable point.

Ain’t people grand?

Via Guardian

Posted in Liverpool, Media

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30 Comments

  1. thisISben says:

    Tbh, in a way he is right.

    Other clubs don’t do this, so why do they?

  2. David Macbeth says:

    I agree wholeheartedly with Jonathan Creek. While the Hillsborough disaster was a tragic event, there really is no reason why Liverpool cannot play on the anniversary of the disaster.

  3. C says:

    Freedom of speach and all that, let the man have his opinions and voice them all he wants.
    Im a Liverpool fan, and I didn’t get upset one tiny bit by that.

  4. Mr Sensible says:

    Very nice gesture from Jonathan Creek, he didn’t have to do it as his comments were completely right IMO. I can’t stand Chelsea but feel sorry for them having to play the greatest team ever 2 days after a FA Cup semi-final. If anything you would like to think Liverpool and Everton could unite and play on that day and celebrate being scousers.

    Reminds me of a certain thing Boris Jonson said about scousers a few years back.

  5. G says:

    There seems to be a bit of confusion over this issue, I think. People think Liverpool have just refused to play on that date for no reason other than sentiment, but they actually request to not play on that date because of the memorial service that takes place at Anfield every year. Liverpool like all club staff to be there to pay their respects to the 96 fans and their request has been granted by the FA. I don’t see the problem with that, or why Davies’ point was particularly “reasonable”, to be honest.

  6. Benji says:

    Agree with all the comments, I can’t understand in the slightest the logic behind not playing.

  7. supa phil says:

    Absurd that he’s receiving death threats for being “insensitive.”

  8. paulo says:

    if other clubs said they didn’t want to play on important dates…..united and munich….the rangers fans dying etc. it seems these clubs don’t have an awful lot of respect for the fans / families / players by playing on these dates. i know alan davies and know he is a top man……but….you were in the wrong this time alan. liverpool don’t play on this date and wont. other clubs could have done the same both before and after hillsborough but ultimately they choose not to

  9. John Davies says:

    are people still going on about hillsborough zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

  10. Al says:

    the only issue I have with the above article is describing Alan Davies as a comedian, that seems wholly inaccurate as he has never once made me laugh

  11. ferguson and webb says:

    really an idiot like alex ferguson the babarian.

  12. jon says:

    Quite interesting really, these kind of things cause great feelings either side, non pool fans are probably showing a bit of general ignorance about the whole thing, in anfield around this time of year there’s always a great buzz around. They want to mourn the dead, the fa is in a tricky situation, if it says no it’s out of the fry ing pan into the fire. My mate Dave summed it up quite nicely at 9pm on Friday, “endless repeats of the same thing will send a man slowly insane”.

  13. Joe says:

    Oh god… Liverpool used to be my second team but there’s just so many complete retards supporting them, I can’t justify it anymore. I agree that it doesn’t help anyone not to play on the 15th. Better still, if you were scheduled to play on that date you could have a nice tribute with a minutes applause or what not. In any case, whether you agree with Davies or not, he says nothing in any way insensitive or hurtful-indeed, he goes at great lengths to stress just how terrible he finds the Hillsborough tragedy-unless you’re an subnormally intelligent paranoid headcase. Oh wait, we’re talking about Liverpool fans here…

  14. dan says:

    i assume alans dear ol’ ma wasn’t crushed to death at a match tho. save it for Q.I alan, leave real supporters to grieve how they like. its an event more important than ANY bloody match.
    AND who cares for chelsea anyway, are the gonna beat barca??? even with a sixteen week holiday before, even if messi missed the plane??? are they feck.

  15. dan says:

    and as for you JOE, i’m sure we’ll manage without you. let me know if you find a club anywhere in english football above the blue square prem that doesn’t have a fuckin LEGION of ‘retards’ in tow. seriously, good luck with that. and remember kids- its never the team that makes the retards, its the alcohol. the sweeet sweeeeet alcohol…..

  16. Andrew says:

    I am Liverpool fan, and I think that at some point we will need to get on with it. I suspect, however, that many of us, who are adamantly opposed to playing football on this day, feel as such because justice has not been completely and unequivocally delivered. Until the 96 and their families have justice it will be hard for the LFC family to have closure. That is what is necessary to get on with it.

    As for people threatening someones life over an opinion, well, that’s embarrassing for the toad who made the threat.

  17. Barry says:

    really argee with his comments about that old biscuit chewing twat king kenny.
    People in new york pay their respects while getting on with their lives every sept 11th, why cant the people of liverpool do the same.ç
    The FA should be focused on helping teams with football, not memorial services.

  18. js94 says:

    As much as death threats are way over the top. It was a bit insensitive and I think it’s hard to understand if your not a Liverpool supporter.

  19. Joe says:

    @Dan: I’m sure you will manage, wouldn’t you like to be part of a ‘likeable’ club though? That year that you finished second, everybody was still hoping for you guys but since then you’ve all become even less tolerable than the smug, opportunistic so-and-so’s slipping into United tops across Britain every saturday.

    And yes, we have the odd mentally disadvantaged fan at Fulham but we just smile politely at their vaguely offensive chants and leave them alone. This is impossible with Liverpool though, because there’s leagues upon leagues of unavoidable mouth-breathing dingbats raving and ranting about refereeing conspiracies, Suarez, Hillsborough, Uncle Tom Cobleigh et al. in every media outlet from 5 Live to the darkest corners of t’internet (ie Pies).

    While we’re on the subject, how can any Liverpool fan possibly justify the treatment they reserved for all-round gentleman and good egg Roy Hodgson when Dalglish is doing much worse having spent 100m on players that can only be described as ‘ballast’? Double standards much?

  20. Tom says:

    What justice do they still seek?!? It seems as though it’s all part of Liverpool’s communal paranoia.

  21. Professor Erno Breastpinchd says:

    Speaking as a Sheffield Wednesday fan and season ticket holder at Hillsborough, I personally think it’s time to move on.
    South Yorkshire police trailed a new way of segregating fans for the Sheffield derby this season, which was met with outcries from the “justice” campaigners as it involved portable barriers. Is it really worth the bother?
    This is our stadium, our city. The only time we make national press is on the memorial and to be frank, the way we police our local derby has nothing to do with anyone in Mersyside.
    Rest in peace to those who died, but live on those who didn’t.

  22. manny says:

    i can’t stand most liverpool supporters…pure scum. must be something in the water and all the incest going on over there.

  23. Mikey J says:

    Hmmm, while I don’t find Alan Davies’ comments offensive I don’t really see how the fact that United play on the Munich anniversary or Bradford play on the anniversary of the fire mean that Liverpool should play on the 15th. Maybe if drunken players were blamed by desperate authorities for causing the Munich crash and those players had thousands of media lies made up about them they might feel differently.

    Oh, and on the point about Hodgson; yes, we are poor under Kenny but the turgid football under Roy was the worst I’ve seen in my 30 years watching Liverpool. Also, Carroll, Henderson and Adam, although crap, are nowhere near the abysmal level of Poulsen, Konchesky and Jones.

  24. Tom Jones says:

    Get over it.

  25. Dan says:

    Why does anyone care what Alan Davies thinks?

  26. muppets says:

    would bet anything that the morons sending death threats about hillsborough being insulted are exactly the same cabbages who make aeroplane gestures at manchester united games

  27. muppets says:

    ^^ That wasn’t me. Someone stole my name! I’m outraged!

    On a serious note couldn’t they have made a nice tribute out of the liverpool everton game? A minutes silence and the like? Instead of screwing over another club?

  28. jon says:

    Konchesky, poulsen and Jones? What did that cost? Under 10m? He had no money to spend. You let the king Piss your money away and perform worse just so you don’t have to apologise for treating a great manager like shit. Liverpool would find their complaints fall on much more sympathetic ears if they didn’t behave like detestable fucktards for the majority of the time. People don’t like united, Chelsea, city etc because they’re good, people hate you because you fail with no dignity.

  29. Tosser says:

    Grow a heart, you all sound like you are a drunk welsh tweeters.

    Let people respect the dead they way they want. How on earth is this even remotely an issue? I dont get it. It hurts no one that Liverpool don’t play on the 15th. No thought as to justice or cause is needed, a large group of people from the same clan died. Let them grieve and mourn the way they choose. And of course that might evolve, but for now let them be.

    It is the constant erosion of respect that disappoints me most about society. Alan Davies could stay home all day on August 22nd, it wouldnt change my life at all…the same could be said for Liverpool holding an annual memorial at Anfield. As for his comments the surly Daglish…spot on. But in regards to the 15th…I read that Daglish went to every funeral he could attend after the tragedy, so it must be a very visceral reaction he has to Hillsborough. Not a cross I would like to bear, nor Alan Davies I should think.

    His seasons tickets arent so far from mine, perhaps I should walk down and punch him in the back of the head for obstructing my view with that greasy mop of his…but that would be an erosion of respect I fear.

  30. Julio Doubleglasias says:

    Stick the grand up ya hoop. Who decided this guy was a comedian,i think im more upset by that.

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