Kevin Bridges: what did the comedian say about the Queen during OVO Hydro show in Glasgow?

Despite events being cancelled around the country following the death of Queen Elizabeth II, comedian Kevin Bridges’ show at Glasgow’s OVO Hydro went ahead last night (8 September).

The Glaswegian funnyman was playing to a sold-out audience at one of the city’s biggest venues when news broke of the monarch’s passing.

Following the monumentous announcement, Bridges couldn’t ignore the news rippling through the arena, and cracked jokes at the start of his show.

However, his take on the news didn’t gone down well with everyone, with some people online claiming that they were in bad taste.

Here’s what he said about the Queen’s passing.

What did Kevin Bridges say about the Queen?

In footage from the show, Bridges arrived on stage and immediately started bantering with the audience over the news which had just broken.

He told the 14,000-strong audience: “On this historic evening, this is the 40th time that I’ve performed at this venue. So I’m sure it’ll be in all of the papers in the morning. Front page in the Daily Telegraph. Welcome to the only f***ing show going ahead in Britain this evening.

“The doors were at half six and she hung on, it’s what she would have wanted so well done.”

Dressed in a suit for the show, Bridges added: “We’re doing it for Lizzie and I’ve wore a black suit as a tribute.

“We’re getting ready, it’s probably the last show before we go back into lockdown, that’s what’s happening.”

The audience were receptive to the jokes, with most laughing along with the comedian.

Further into his opening monologue, Bridges criticised the attention her death would take away from pressing matters such as the cost of living crisis.

He said that the Queen wouldn’t be “the only old woman that’s going to die this winter”, before adding: “Page 25 tomorrow, they’ll be all lots of s**t getting buried. F*****g Liz Truss, ‘what did I say that energy bill cap was two and a half grand? F**k that.”

He finished the intro saying: “Get in Charles innit, that’s that. The new head of state, a wee dog [King Charles Spaniel]. Stick him on the money til he f*****g heels.”

What has been the reaction to the jokes?

While the audience appeared to laugh along with the comedian, some people online found the jokes in poor taste so close to the former monarch’s death.

One angry critic online tweeted: “If you’ve been unfortunate enough to see excerpts of Kevin Bridges show last night where he made several vile and disgusting comments about the passing of Her Majesty the Queen, feel free to register your complaint to the Hydro.”

Another said: “Kevin bridges is an absolute disgrace of a human, going to the lowest denominator and calling it humour. Disgusting absolutely disgusting.”

Despite the cancellation of events throughout the weekend, the OVO Hydro has announced that the remaining dates for Kevin Bridges over the weekend will go ahead.