# Giles Coren - racist restaurant writer?



## gongey (25 Jul 2008)

[See new post below]


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## gongey (25 Jul 2008)

*Giles Coren - food critic and possibly a little racist?*

The Guardian are doing their utmost to make a hero out of Coren this week following on from the leak of an his hissy email to the Sunday Times over their stripping of pieces of his regular critical article. 

Generally I wouldn't give two number 2's to any of his work, but my attention was dragged to a piece in the article whereby he compares the Sunday Times editing to drunk Irish.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/jul/23/mediamonkey 

Am I the only one who feels that his words and the meaning behind those words are reminiscent of the early 80s and British opinions of Irish? If this comparison was brought against someone of colour there would be uproar and vilification would follow - without doubt from those bastions of writing,the Times and Guardian. 

Just seems unbelievable double standards and I'm really peeved.

to read the article go to


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## viztopia (25 Jul 2008)

*Re: Giles Coren - food critic and possibly a little racist?*

i read the post and he comes accross as a real ass. i sthere anyway we can complain about this?


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## Bamhan (25 Jul 2008)

*Re: Giles Coren - food critic and possibly a little racist?*

What an idiot!


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## Pique318 (25 Jul 2008)

*Re: Giles Coren - food critic and possibly a little racist?*

Jaysus, all that over a letter 'a' ! I'd hate to hear what he has to say if someone let a typo in !!!

Still, I hope someone sneezes on his salad, the git. He always struck me as a pompous know-it-all.


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## MandaC (25 Jul 2008)

*Re: Giles Coren - food critic and possibly a little racist?*

Actually, I think a complaint is in order too!

Where should it be lodged.

Hate this sort of rubbish.

Anyone who is offended should lodge a complaint!  Who deals with complaints about this type of thing.


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## Purple (25 Jul 2008)

What as pompous ass


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## gongey (25 Jul 2008)

i've written to the Guardian Editor and asked him/her whether the piece would have been allowed were "Irish" dropped and replaced by Black or Asian".

is there an overall media regulator?


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## Sunny (25 Jul 2008)

gongey said:


> i've written to the Guardian Editor and asked him/her whether the piece would have been allowed were "Irish" dropped and replaced by Black or Asian".
> 
> is there an overall media regulator?


 
Are the Guardian just not printing what Giles Coren wrote in an e-mail so if anyone should be getting abused it should be Giles Coren.


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## z103 (25 Jul 2008)

I never even heard of Giles Coren before this thread, so his self publicity tactics seem to be paying off.


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## becky (25 Jul 2008)

Other then the offensive reference does anyone else not think its a brillant email??


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## Caveat (25 Jul 2008)

Have to say it made me smile a bit - like an Xrated _Basil Fawlty_ or something.


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## Lauren (25 Jul 2008)

He has little to be worried about eh? Is he sometimes on Ramsey's programmes? What an arrogant idiot! I'll happily complain too....


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## becky (25 Jul 2008)

Lauren said:


> He has little to be worried about eh? Is he sometimes on Ramsey's programmes? What an arrogant idiot! I'll happily complain too....


 
Yes he is on the F Word.  Have to say I quite fancy him so I won't be complaining.


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## Sunny (25 Jul 2008)

becky said:


> Other then the offensive reference does anyone else not think its a brillant email??


 
Well personally I don't find the reference offensive and to be honest I don't think the e-mail is brilliant at all. Its just sad. Haven't read Giles Coren before but if he writes like that, I am not missing anything


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## FredBloggs (25 Jul 2008)

I think its funny the way he rants and raves ... then signs it off "All the best"

Good example of why you shouldn't use email to vent your anger!  (Especially if you are an egotistical snob)


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## z103 (25 Jul 2008)

His overuse of expletives ruin their shock value. He's ruining it for everyone else.


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## gongey (25 Jul 2008)

Sunny said:


> Well personally I don't find the reference offensive and to be honest I don't think the e-mail is brilliant at all. Its just sad. Haven't read Giles Coren before but if he writes like that, I am not missing anything



how can it not be offensive ? being drunk and Irish was the common perception in the UK all through the 80s and ran through to the 90s - the only jobs over there were on building sites for the lucky few as plasterers and labourers. He needs this referencing as a comparison? it's distinctly offensive to Irish emigrants and racist to irish as a whole.

Wouldn't see Christy Moore inviting him around for tea and biscuits....


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## truthseeker (25 Jul 2008)

Caveat said:


> Have to say it made me smile a bit - like an Xrated _Basil Fawlty_ or something.


 
Excellent


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## becky (25 Jul 2008)

Sunny said:


> Well personally I don't find the reference offensive and to be honest I don't think the e-mail is brilliant at all. Its just sad. Haven't read Giles Coren before but if he writes like that, I am not missing anything


 
I personally don't find it offensive either.

Thought the 'all the best' the end was priceless.

I have signed off an odd email 'Kindest regards' when I mean the very opposite.


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## z103 (25 Jul 2008)

> how can it not be offensive ? being drunk and Irish was the common perception in the UK all through the 80s and ran through to the 90s - the only jobs over there were on building sites for the lucky few as plasterers and labourers. He needs this referencing as a comparison? it's distinctly offensive to Irish emigrants and racist to irish as a whole.


There were more jobs than that available.
The 'drunk and Irish' perception wasn't a million miles away from the truth in _many_ cases either. Of course, it would be wrong to generalise.


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## gongey (25 Jul 2008)

leghorn said:


> There were more jobs than that available.
> The 'drunk and Irish' perception wasn't a million miles away from the truth in _many_ cases either. Of course, it would be wrong to generalise.



??? 

makes no sense


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## MandaC (25 Jul 2008)

gongey said:


> i've written to the Guardian Editor and asked him/her whether the piece would have been allowed were "Irish" dropped and replaced by Black or Asian".
> 
> is there an overall media regulator?



I totally agree with this.

Could you complain here?

[broken link removed]


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## Sn@kebite (25 Jul 2008)

Who starts a new paragraph with the word 'and'? Isn't that bad grammar? 

Honestly i never heard of this guy before but if he does this it is only to deliberately get it put in the paper to promote himself which is, I assume, what his intention was. It also shows how desperate he is to not die out, or even become famous. the saying "A drowning man will clutch a straw" comes to mind.

btw, by creating this thread you have now let me know who he is and have helped him become known in ireland, so you just helped him op.

Damn!


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## S.L.F (25 Jul 2008)

The man is a pompous ass.


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## Purple (25 Jul 2008)

becky said:


> Other then the offensive reference does anyone else not think its a brillant email??


I don'y find it offensive and I agree that it's very well written.


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## Madangan (26 Jul 2008)

I dont find it offensive nor do I consider it to be brilliant. All it is is a silly little rant by a person who has an  unjustified high opinion of themselves. He must be compensating for something.


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## WaterSprite (26 Jul 2008)

Madangan said:


> I dont find it offensive nor do I consider it to be brilliant. All it is is a silly little rant by a person who has an  unjustified high opinion of themselves. He must be compensating for something.



Agree Madangan.  Don't find it particularly offensive but don't find the attitude/prejudice particularly surprising either.  

Find it odd that someone who has such a stick up his a** about the English language would have such crap grammar tho...

_"I am insulted enough that you think you have a better ear for English than me..."_

Sprite


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## room305 (26 Jul 2008)

Dunno what's sadder - the email written by this pompous twat or the people getting offended by a casual reference to a drunken Irish labourer. I guess I'd plump for those getting offended.

Seriously, it was a private email which alluded to an ubiquitous global stereotype of "Oirishness", not a treatise on Anglo-Hiberno relations. Get a grip.

Anyone spot the typo in the same reference? I'm assuming there aren't too many "Christ and his pet bear" frescos knocking about the place. Guess the Guardian didn't want to add the appropriate "d" in case it prompted another diatribe.


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## dereko1969 (1 Aug 2008)

well if you bothered following the instructions given you would see that they are trying to get you to identify which specific element of the code has been breached, it's quite simple really.

this is a fuss about nothing, i thought it was a funny enough diatribe which people should remember was not supposed to be published, it was sent as a private email


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## ney001 (2 Aug 2008)

room305 said:


> Dunno what's sadder - the email written by this pompous twat or the people getting offended by a casual reference to a drunken Irish labourer. I guess I'd plump for those getting offended.
> 
> Seriously, it was a private email which alluded to an ubiquitous global stereotype of "Oirishness", not a treatise on Anglo-Hiberno relations. Get a grip.
> 
> Anyone spot the typo in the same reference? I'm assuming there aren't too many "Christ and his pet bear" frescos knocking about the place. Guess the Guardian didn't want to add the appropriate "d" in case it prompted another diatribe.



I have to agree, the guy is a twat no doubt but I think we are being a bit over sensitive here.  Even if he meant it as a slur against the Irish and is a racist, so what - the email wasn't meant to be published, it was private correspondence and he's entitled to his beliefs, however wrong and misguided they are!.  Don't give him any more thought he's an This post will be deleted if not edited to remove bad language!


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## Simeon (2 Aug 2008)

Yes, I think I have to agree with nee001 - a private eMail that went public. And as a plasterer who likes the odd snifter or three, I found it faintly amusing. I'm sure we've all said little things in letters that were for the recipient's eyes only. I lived in London during all of the 70s and found some English people that didn't like the Irish and some Irish people that didn't like the English. People are people and have a right to like/dislike who they, er, like.


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## MandaC (2 Aug 2008)

uiop said:


> sorry Im too lazy/busy usually
> 
> It was a big effort just to complain.
> 
> ...



Uiop, you are right.  

It is nice to see some people in Britain still think it's ok to slag off the Irish a la Jim Davidson or Bernard Manning in the 70's.


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## The_Banker (5 Aug 2008)

If I am not mistaken did the same Giles Coren not cause a similar controversy 2 or 3 years back by using a disparaging word to describe the Polish people after he accused them of being complicit is assisting the Germans with the holocaust during the war years?
As far as I can remember he got his knuckles rapped that time but I can’t remember the actual gist of it.


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## cobalt (6 Aug 2008)

He certainly caused uproar in Belfast with his description of restaurant clientele in this review. I heard him defending himself against angry locals on a BBC NI radio phone in show a few days later. Unfortunately, the clip no longer seems to be on the BBC website.


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## Purple (6 Aug 2008)

cobalt said:


> He certainly caused uproar in Belfast with his description of restaurant clientele in this review. I heard him defending himself against angry locals on a BBC NI radio phone in show a few days later. Unfortunately, the clip no longer seems to be on the BBC website.


Now that was brilliant.


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## sparkeee (6 Aug 2008)

fabulous,doesn't pull the punches,great to see it in this climate of political correctness.


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## Bubbly Scot (6 Aug 2008)

Definatly up his ass that one, did anyone see the reply from the sub editor? Classic!

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/jul/29/sundaytimes.pressandpublishing


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## becky (6 Aug 2008)

Brillant  thanks for posting it.


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## Purple (7 Aug 2008)

Bubbly Scot said:


> Definatly up his ass that one, did anyone see the reply from the sub editor? Classic!
> 
> http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/jul/29/sundaytimes.pressandpublishing


Superb.


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