Rob Beckett says it’s not worth joking about JK Rowling: ‘That’s a red zone’

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 Rob Beckett has suggested that it’s not worth making jokes about controversial topics or people, such as JK Rowling. Beckett told The Telegraph: “I know that JK Rowling and Harry Potter, there’s something’s going on with it, I don’t really know, though. All I know is: ‘Don’t mention JK Rowling or Harry Potter at all.’ You just think, that’s a red zone, that’s going to cause problems, don’t mention that.” Beckett also rallied against the idea that cancel culture is ruining what comedians can and can’t say. “Don’t get me wrong, it happens – but I just don’t agree with this, ‘You can’t say anything any more…’ thing, I just think that’s b******s. The people who say that want to just exclusively talk about the thing they feel they can’t say.” Rob Beckett and Romesh Ranganathan are hosting this year’s Bafta TV Awards The British Academy Television Awards air on BBC One on 14 May.