Comic Relief: David Walliams and Matt Lucas criticised for ‘disgusting’ Billie Eilish sketch
‘Little Britain’ stars parodied Eilish along with Miley Cyrus and Post Malone
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.David Walliams and Matt Lucas have attracted criticism for a “disgusting” sketch impersonating Billie Eilish.
The comedic duo appeared on BBC’s Comic Relief on Friday night (18 March), appearing in a sketch that saw Walliams and Lucas imitating some of the biggest stars in music.
Miley Cyrus, Lewis Capaldi, Post Malone, Adele, Lady Gaga and Billy Ray Cyrus were all parodied.
Many viewers, however, took issue with how Eilish was lampooned in the performance.
Donning the singer’s signature black and green hair, Walliams played Eilish.
His character is seen sitting cross-legged on the sofa focused on her phone while presenter Vernon Kay is attempting to ask her questions.
She is seen rebuffing Kay’s attempts at making conversation, stating that she is too busy on TikTok and Mumsnet.
“I can come back a little later if you want,” Kay tells her, to which she responds: “Dude, I’m on The Daily Telegraph posting a comment about Michael Gove,” after which they wrestle over her phone.
When Kay introduces Lewis Capaldi (played by Matt Lucas) as a surprise guest, Eilish is seen being rude and uninterested in the Scottish musician.
“Is he a competition winner?” she says. “I did say no meet and greets.”
Viewers took to Twitter to share their views on the skit.
“David Walliams (50-year-old man) dresses up as Billie Eilish (20-year-old young woman),” wrote one person. “It’s really funny, apparently, to mock clever, creative women who dare to be a bit different.”
Commenting on Walliams’s Twitter post promoting the sketch, another wrote: “On a scale of yes, how much do you hate women?”
Someone else wrote: “Really not enjoying David Walliams and Matt Lucas on Comic Relief. Not funny. If a woman did anything like this there would be uproar.
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days
New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days
New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled
“That imitation of Billie Eilish was just disgusting. Might’ve been funny back in the day but not anymore. At least make the material up to date.”
A fourth person called the comedian’s impression of Eilish a “man-made horror beyond the mind’s comprehension”.
Another person agreed that “the interpretations of Eilish and Cyrus were very out of date”.
Elsewhere on the programme, David Tennant was praised by viewers for his emotional speech about the Ukraine crisis.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments