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Double Take slammed for “After School You Die” sketch

Updated: "Satire draws attention to serious matters through humour," says producer after criticism over a bullying sketch.

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dtakeSeven’s Double Take sketch comedy has come under fire following a sketch last night on schoolyard bullying.

The sketch was presented as an advertisement for a fictional private school ‘St. Fillimore’s.’

A presenter, or possibly principal, boasted the school had “the best bullies money can buy.”

Whilst various scenes showed kids pulling pranks on one another, one scene depicted a laptop screen with the message “After School You Die” being sent between students.

“With every one of our bullies supplied with their own broadband account, cyber-bullying is no longer just a dream but an appalling everyday reality,” the presenter added.

“Here at St Fillimore’s our school bullies have gone on to successful careers as CEOs, professional football players and chief parking inspectors.

“While our victims have mostly gone on to top themselves.”

The sketch comes hot on the heels of 60 Minutes being forced to withhold a story on teenage suicide following concern over deaths in the wider community. Nine says the report has the co-operation of family members involved in the story.

Psychologist Dr. Michael Carr-Gregg said Double Take should issue a public apology.

“These people have obviously been to the Chaser’s War on Everything school of comedy,” he said. “I think Australians are getting sick and tired of comedians making jokes about things that are really not funny.”

The Chaser recently apologised for its “Make a Realistic Wish” sketch and saw the ABC suspend the show for two episodes whilst stripping an ABC executive of key duties.

UPDATED: David McDonald, Double Take creator and EP responded this afternoon saying, “As it happens, this particular sketch was written and filmed very early in the production schedule.

“It was not produced and aired in reaction to recent events, but written to highlight the serious nature of bullying.”

“Satire draws attention to serious matters through humour. On Double Take, social issues are often discussed, not to make light of them but draw attention to them. If the consequence of a particular sketch is community discussion then this can be a positive thing.”

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www.beyondblue.org.au

Source: news.com.au

52 Responses

  2. koverstreet – I totally agree!!!! It is the most ridiculous show ever. It’s not even funny. It just has this lowest form of humour, actually you can’t even call it humour… its a really really really crap show

  3. Simon you are probably right there:)

    Anyway clearly the sketch was anti-bullying and as such I have no issue with it.

    DT should be slammed for it’s overall shiteness though.

  5. Does anyone think the title of this News Ltd article is a bit out of context (found on news.com.au)
    “Channel 7 show laughs at suicide” is on the main page,
    and the story is titled: “Double Take laughs at suicide, bullying”

    The titles seem a tiny bit of a stretch, although the skit probably did take things too far.

  6. I’m surprised at how far cyber bullying has actually come. 5 years ago, when I was in year 12, no one had myspace, facebook, twitter, youtube accounts and Camera phones (mainly because most of those didn’t exist), and so when the term ‘cyber bullying’ was introduced to us in year 12, most of us laughed because we couldn’t see how you could actually bully online. Now days, there are multiple ways to bully online, so I certainly feel for the kids.

    MSN messenger was the only online community any of use took part in, and you only added people you wanted.

    The only funny part of the sketch : “Here at St Fillimore’s our school bullies have gone on to successful careers as CEOs, professional football players and chief parking inspectors.” cause it’s true (particularly parking inspectors).

  7. i haven’t seen it yet, i tuned out after TVburp but:
    “While our victims have mostly gone on to top themselves.”
    ^^is that the only reference to suicide, i don’t think there is anything wrong with that. there has been worse, is every light passing reference to suicide considered crucifixion these days.

  9. @daniel. thats not funny.

    the show is terrible and it should be canned any way. i am stuffed if i know why 7 would a show like this one on. full frontal day’s are well and truely over

  10. Have Australians honestly forgotten what role satire and parody have in comedy?

    I blame the media, i reckon the journalist went looking for someone to make comment and not the other way around. They won’t be happy till we are all watching Rove-styled comedians that are bland and unfunny but it doesn’t offend your Nan so thats ok.

  15. Oh what a surprise, serial won’t-somebody-think-of-the-children media whore Dr Michael Carr-Gregg has his self-righteous knickers in a knot over “suicide” being mentioned in popular entertainment. Seriously, this is the same guy who wanted “The Happening” banned because he believed it would encourage suicide. He genuinely believes that having suicide mentioned or addressed in any way, shape, or form in the media will automatically trigger vulnerable people to kill themselves. He’s a hysterical idiot, and a disservice to his profession. God knows I wouldn’t want my kids treated by him if they were depressed.

  16. Double Take should be slammed for it’s crapness. I’m surprised there was actually people watching this show in the first place to have someone to make a complaint.

  17. I’m yet to see the show, but I thought this news item is quite funny given the article I read in The Age yesterday, profiling one of the cast and says this about the show:

    “Double Take’s point of difference in the sketch-show arena is its focus on the world of entertainment, which makes it unlikely to offend the arbiters of taste and decency in the way that The Chaser team can.”

    Ouch. Bad timing. :p

  18. Oh, c’mon! It was not given glory to bullies! It was making the point that so much goes of it in schools and nothing is done about it. This is again a reminder of what a “cotton wool” country we live in. Disappointed in the media’s reaction, they’ve completely missed the point.

  19. I have to say I didn’t like the sketch, but only because it was a poor sketch. Dr. Michael Carr-Gregg is right, they should apologise, but for the whole darn show. Double Take is the only thing that makes me want to crawl into the bath and open a vein. Dross!

  20. Haven’t seen it, but from this article it seems as though the only offending part was the line “While our victims have mostly gone on to top themselves.”. Other than that, I think the skit takes aim at bullying, and also takes aim at football players and CEOs and the manner in which they conduct themselves.

    However, given the outcry over the Chaser’s stunt, I suspect a similar thing will occur with this.

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