Oh dear, looks like someone’s got the Isle of Wight mixed up with the Isle of Man again.
British actress Emma Thompson has managed to put her foot in it, upsetting many Islanders, including council leader David Pugh, when she referred to the Isle of Wight as somewhere that still stoned people for homosexuality.
The slur towards the Island came during an American television interview on the The Late Late Show.
She went on to say “I think they are still allowed to flog them, which some of them enjoy. I think they are allowed to shoot Irish or Scottish people if they arrive on the island “” it is still in the rules, they are allowed to torture people. It’s lovely, you should go.”
Mistaken identity
We reckon that she got a little confused between the Isle of Wight and The Isle of Man, which famously only decriminalised homosexuality in 1992.
Isle of Wight Council Leader David Pugh had a few words to say on the matter, including the offer of hosting a visit for Ms Thompson to our fair Isle.
He told VB, “It’s a great shame that someone with her profile should make such ridiculous claims. Presumably Emma Thompson made these comments to get some laughs on the chat show.
“The Island is, of course, a very diverse and welcoming place as testified by the many millions of visitors that holiday here each year and should she wish to experience the reality of the Isle of Wight first hand, we would be happy to host a visit for her.
Pugh gets witty
He went on to show that even a council leader can come up with witty repost, “Her claims are ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ and as outlandish as some of the fiction in the Harry Potter films she has been working on.
“If there was a Golden Globe Award for Best Fictional Claims on a Chat Show, Emma Thompson would win it hands down.”
You tell ‘er Dave.
Image: Garry Knight under CC BY-SA 2.0
