“The BBC gave me £1m to go away…I had two more wives out of that”
Ustreme founder Jim Davidson OBE proved his credentials as the master of comedy when he appeared on GB News with Nigel Farage in front of a live audience.
Jim appeared as the special guest for Talking Pints in a special ‘Farage At Large’ show which was filmed in front of a 150-strong crowd in Portsmouth.
Jim performed a short two-minute stand-up routine ahead of his interview, leaving the audience and host in fits of laughter when he joked that there were more people in the venue than Piers Morgan’s TalkTV show audience.
During his 20-minute interview with host Nigel he spoke about his big break in showbusiness, winning New Faces in 1976.
“I called my mum after I won and said ‘you are never going to have to work again. And she never did.
“…She was always lazy, my mum!”
Asked to give relationship advice, the star – who has been married five times – said: “I’ve been married 50 years…if you add them all up.”
And he recalled being ‘canned’ by the BBC after years presenting primetime Saturday night shows Big Break and Generation Game, adding: “They gave me £1 million to go away…I had two more wives out of that.”
Jim also spoke about the darkest period of his life being arrested as part of an investigation into historic sexual allegations, which resulted in him being told he would face no further action after presenting evidence proving his innocence.
Nigel asked him: “We know there was some seriously bad people around, Saville, (Rolf) Harris.
“But there was a lot of innocent people getting caught up in Operation Yewtree and other things, for you it was devastating, wasn’t it?
To which Jim replied: “Now, still to this day, the accusation is enough, the accusation does the damage.
“Not the fact that you go to court and the police say sorry, you’ve proved there is no case to answer, they don’t say that they say there is no further action.
“In my case I presented all the evidence that they wanted and they said okay, basically we’re sorry.
But he proved that he can find humour in even the darkest of his life stories, adding: “‘They said, ‘did you have girls in your dressing room?’.
“Yeah.
“I had one banging on my dressing room door at 2 o’clock in the morning and I had to let her out in the end.”
The show was being filmed in Portsmouth due to its naval links as the country marks the 40th anniversary of the Falklands War.
As a huge supporter of military charities who has entertained troops – including in the Falklands – numerous times, Jim talked about what more needs to be done to support veterans.
He also spoke about Ustreme’s incredible new Pull Up A Sandbag series, which has seen former Paratrooper Denzil Connick interview fellow Falklands heroes on the anniversary of the conflict exclusively for the platform.
Watch the full interview at https://youtu.be/eGeQO1mTdRw
