Dara O’Briain, the Irish comedian best known as the face of the BBC’s Mock the Week, has faced a barrage of complaints – including from GB News’ own Patrick Christys – following comments made about migrants and child sex abuse cases.
The comic took to X on Monday night to react to remarks made by Elon Musk on the Joe Rogan Experience in which the Tesla boss claimed quaint British towns and villages were in the midst of a crisis involving “thousands of people showing up and raping the kids”.
Discussing the influx of migrants into small UK and Irish cities, Mr Musk told comedian Mr Rogan: “These lovely small towns in England, Scotland, Ireland, they’ve been like living their lives quietly. They’re like hobbits, frankly.
“In fact, JRR Tolkien based the hobbits on people he knew in small-town England because they were just like lovely people who like to smoke their pipe, have nice meals, and everything is pleasant.
Dara O’Briain was inundated with backlash on Monday evening
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“He was talking about places like Hertfordshire, the shire around the Greater London area, Oxfordshire type of thing. But the reason they’ve been able to enjoy the shire is because hard men have protected them from the dangers of the world.
“But since they have almost no exposure to the dangers of the world, they don’t realise, until one day, a thousand people show up in your village of 500 out of nowhere and start raping the kids. That has now happened God knows how many times in Britain.”
The clip of Mr Musk has since gone viral on social media, and it prompted Mr O’Briain to dispute the claims made by the X owner.
“This is genuinely insane,” Mr O’Briain fumed. “I mean, just worryingly divorced from any reality. How desperate are people to believe this nonsense?”
Patrick Christys is one of the People’s Channel’s best-known presenters
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Before long, the Mock the Week and Live at the Apollo star was met with a barrage of angry responses, including one X user who fired back: “Genuinely insane to say it’s not happening.
“Newtown Mount Kennedy had busloads of people smuggled in under the cover of darkness. Plenty of small towns in Ireland have had their locals outnumbered in a matter (of) months.”
Not backing down from his stance, Mr O’Briain sparked further controversy as he questioned: “Raping the kids? Sorry? When did that happen?”
Inevitably, the comedian’s page was met with X users highlighting the grooming gangs scandal in the UK, given the fact that inquiries have found evidence of hundreds of white working-class girls being subjected to abuse by predominantly Pakistani-heritage grooming gangs in Rotherham, Rochdale, Oxford, and Telford, among other towns.
Dara O’Briain is best known for his stand-up comedy and Mock the Week
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Among those flabbergasted by Mr O’Briain’s social media posts was Patrick, who shared his thoughts on the matter. “I still can’t believe he hasn’t deleted this,” he mocked in disbelief.
Eventually, Mr O’Briain did delete his questioning of child sex abuse cases and issued a clarification soon after, insisting he was referring specifically to one Irish town rather than the broader UK and Ireland.
He penned: “A lot of people getting very angry here about a quote from me, which is actually a reply to a very specific conversation about a town in Ireland.
“I am well aware that people will just ignore this clarification and believe what they want, but that’s the actual context.”
And he even issued a response to Patrick personally, reiterating: “Thanks for the reminder, Patrick.
“It was actually specifically about Newtownmountkennedy in Wicklow, but pretty pointless to explain that, when people are so eager to believe the worst.”
Newtown Mount Kennedy found itself in the news last year when locals objected to the arrival of asylum seekers moving into a former convent.
According to the Guardian, 12-16 makeshift tents were used to house the migrants, surrounded by walls strewn with graffiti objecting to their arrival.
Thanks for the reminder Patrick. It was actually specifically about Newtownmountkennedy in Wicklow, but pretty pointless to explain that, when people are so eager to believe the worst.
— Dara Ó Briain (@daraobriain) November 3, 2025
Prior to the arrival of asylum seekers in the town, 24-hour protests had taken place.
Hostilities resulted in some protesting the camp being charged by police, although locals insisted their protests had been largely peaceful.
The Irish capital of Dublin has also been the home to a series of anti-immigration riots in recent years.