Christopher Biggins: Chris Bryant absurd to think ‘pantomime dame’ jibe was homophobic
The actor, and sometime pantomime dame Christopher Biggins has said the openly gay Labour MP Chris Bryant is “ridiculous” for believing the chancellor George Osborne was being homophobic when he jokingly described the MP as a “pantomime dame.”
The chancellor made the comments in the House of Commons after Mr Bryant accused him of being “Baron Hardup,” the father of Cinderella and asked him to behave a bit more like Prince Charming. Mr Osborne quipped “at least I’m not the pantomime dame.”
Mr Bryant, the MP for Rhondda, said afterwards: “I don’t think he would have said that phrase if I was not gay. I think when he gets back to the office he will probably think to himself ‘I should send a little note saying sorry, I didn’t mean to offend’.
“We all get it wrong sometimes and I think he got it wrong this time,” he added.
Mr Biggins told the Daily Telegraph: “The man is being ridiculous. It doesn’t matter that some of the great panto dames happen to be have been heterosexual, it’s just such an absurd thing to get upset about. If he can’t take that as a joke, then he doesn’t have any sense of humour and I’m really rather worried about him. Honestly, it’s nothing to get so overwrought about.”
When Mr Bryant read Mr Biggin’s remarks he tweeted: “I think I feel honoured to have been condemned by Christopher Biggins.”
Mr Bryant is no stranger to delivering witty come-backs of his own. Earlier this year he was lauded on Twitter after saying to the Sky News presenter Kay Burley “you seem to be a bit dim, if you don’t mind me saying so” during a confrontational live interview.
