BBC boss left squirming after awkward Mrs Brown’s Boys question

Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter for all the latest entertainment news and reviews Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Jon Petrie, the BBC director of comedy, was unable to respond when he was asked whether he found Mrs Brown’s Boys funny. At an audience Q&A for the BBC Comedy Showcase at Soho House on Tuesday 18 June, an audience member asked Petrie: “Can I ask, as comedy chief, do you actually find Mrs Brown’s Boys funny? The slapstick sitcom has run since 2011 despite negative reviews O’Carroll cross-dresses to star as Mrs Brown’s Boys’ titular matriarch, appearing alongside several of his own family members and friends. In The Independent’s review of the most recent Christmas special, Sean O’Grady gave Mrs Brown’s Boys 0.5 stars, writing: “Like the trains, the NHS, consumer helplines, and virtually everything else these days, even Mrs Brown’s Boys doesn’t seem to work anymore.” However, in January, O’Carroll promised to continue making the show despite the criticism it receives.