March 15, 2017

"My real life punched through the fake cover I had created on television."

Said Robert E. Kelly, the "BBC dad."
He expressed some concern about all the attention his family had received, saying, “We have been buried in phone calls.” And he denied any intention of cashing in on his newfound fame, saying that “it would be unseemly to monetize” something involving his children.

20 comments:

Will Cate said...

So it seems the latest, from the Outrage Patrol, is that if one thought the woman was a "nanny" then one is a racist and intolerant of mixed marriages. Or something.

Left Bank of the Charles said...

Oops, I burned one of my free trips through the NYT paywall on that link.

FWBuff said...

I loved the original interview clip from the very first time I saw it. It was completely relatable as family life intruded on work. And the spontaneity of those children! The dad's ability to smile despite (because of) the chaos made it all even better.

Amexpat said...

It's interesting how many misconceptions there were about that interview. Like his Asian wife being the au pair and that pushed his child out of the way. I saw an interview today that the Wall Street journal had with him and his family and he seemed like a nice guy.

As funny as that BBC interview was, this one from 10 years ago was even funnier. a Guy had gone in for an interview for an IT job at the BBC and by mistake they thought he was to be interviewed on TV. You can see the shock on his face when he realized this, but he played along.
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-36261996

MisterBuddwing said...

So it seems the latest, from the Outrage Patrol, is that if one thought the woman was a "nanny" then one is a racist and intolerant of mixed marriages. Or something.

Care to share a parallel experience that you went through, and how you dealt with it?

rhhardin said...

It's the bbc that's fake.

RMc said...

“it would be unseemly to monetize” something involving his children.

A Kardashian, he's not.

Sebastian said...

No need for him to describe his professional persona as a "fake cover."

Amexpat said...

Sorry the follow up interview was on the BBC, not the Wall Street Journal. His kids look to be a handful.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-39274662

Will Cate said...

Care to share a parallel experience that you went through, and how you dealt with it?

No, because there is none.

In fact it did not even register to me that the woman was non-white, Asian or whatever, until I went back & watched it a 2nd time. But I don't think it's unreasonable at all to think that a TV reporter working at home has a nanny to watch after the kids, esp. if wife is perhaps working outside-the-home.

Unknown said...

To quote the good Professor: Should we be talking about this?

I mean, seriously. What a nothingburger.

Jim said...

“'it would be unseemly to monetize' something involving his children"
Oh, if only Kris Kardashian had been so inclined.

Birches said...

Different strokes for different folks. As a SAHM myself, it never occurred to me that she might be the nanny. I thought that was a weird assumption by many.

The best part of the video is when the boy comes in in the walker. So my life.

Bill said...

I checked his Twitter account after the story broke and was cheered by the lack of reference to the video, since reticence is in such short supply these days. Ultimately, the pressure to be interviewed about the video probably got to be too much.

Lovely family.

madAsHell said...

I loved the daughter's Prof. Harold Hill "Trouble with a capital T" strut into the bedroom. I'm sure I could hear 76 trombones. The son following as though he was shot from a cannon was over-the-top.

Thorley Winston said...

I shared the video with my colleagues in the office and the ones who had children and have worked from home all thought it was hilarious in the "I've been there and I'm glad it's happening to someone else this time" variety.

Kyzer SoSay said...

If I have a conference call that runs late, I always end up having to mute my phone or computer as my yellow lab greets my wife arriving home from her job. He's a gentle dog with a decidedly rough bark that echoes through the house like a shell explosion in the hills of Tora Bora. Sometimes I'm not fast enough, and the quips of "[Kyzernick]'s working from the animal shelter again" or "Why are you in the doghouse?" start flying.

eddie willers said...

I haven't laughed so hard since "Charlie bit my finger".

And since he was in Korea, I figured he had a Korean wife. Am I weird or what?

Freeman Hunt said...

"So it seems the latest, from the Outrage Patrol, is that if one thought the woman was a "nanny" then one is a racist and intolerant of mixed marriages."

This was extremely entertaining to me because I assumed she was the wife, and it was a few of my more SWJ inclined friends who assumed she was a nanny. He he he.

wwww said...



Who can't love this family? Love this video. It gets better with each replay. Recently noticed the "desk" was a bed when the books fell off.

The little girl's march is great, but lost it when the baby rolls in like a boss. The Kramer slide, the door grab, the Dad valiantly continuing amidst the chaos, the flapping map.

The parody videos are also fun.