Viewers of The One Show have praised the brutal comments made by actor Dan Stevens about Boris Johnson on the BBC show on Wednesday. Speaking to presenters Alex Jones and Jermaine Jenas, Dan, known for starring in hit ITV period drama Downtown Abbey and 2017 film Beauty and the Beast, was promoting his forthcoming series, Gaslit - a show about the Watergate scandal of 1972 when he unexpectedly hit out at the Prime Minister.
In the show, the actor said: "Well, what you’ve got is a criminal for a leader who is wrapped in a messy war, embroiled in a stupid scandal and surrounded by ambitious idiots and really should resign," he said, before pausing briefly. He then continued: "I’m sorry that’s the intro to Boris Johnson."
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The comments left BBC presenters Alex and Jermaine silent with gasps being heard all around the studio before the actor continued to explain the plot of his new series. It follows after recent news that the Prime Minister and Chancellor Rishi Sunak are being served with fines for breaching lockdown laws during the Covid pandemic. Top Welsh Tories have given Boris Johnson their full backing despite mounting public anger over lockdown fines - read about that here.
Viewers rallied in defence of the actor's comments online during the episode with many admiring the outburst. Here are just some of the things our readers had to say about it in Facebook on response to our story about the show.
Sheila Ross commended the English actor following his comments, posting: "He deserves any and all accolades for this stunning performance. Well done Dan. Love, love, love him for his honesty. Never a truer word said," - words that were widely popular amongst the general response, gaining over 50 thumbs up from fans who felt similarly.
Denise Wilson supported the strong words in support of Dan, describing them as "utterly correct", and leaving some additional strong words for the Prime Minister herself: "Unfortunately, Boris’s relationship with truth is sadly lacking, oh gosh, with truth. And a chancellor with a wife avoiding millions in taxes?? Oh they do have the interest in their voters foremost? I think NOT!! This is also not libel nor slander".
Sandra Walters said: "He only said out loud what the rest of us was thinking! Good on him!", while Karen Clifford said: "Funny and true I'd say". Gareth Capper agreed by saying: "He’s not wrong though is he?"
Others questioned the reasons for the gasps, with Jane Mackenzie arguing Dan was "just being honest with guts enough to say what we all think" but Jean McHugh-Morris raised concerns over the reaction within the studio. Jean said "what is really worrying is that the audience on a state-funded TV show are gasping in shock when they hear criticism of the government" a seemingly supported opinion gaining over 20 thumbs up.
Some even had to rewind the programme in awe of the comments. Kerry Brookes Merchant said "I had to rewind it and listen to it again I thought he was brilliant! Well said."
Whilst the general response to the actors' comments were in praise of his strong words, not everyone was left in support of his actions. Carol Owen described the scenes as "unprofessional" with many questioning if they had been referring to the PM or the actor. You can get stories like this straight to your inbox with our newsletters.
