Jerry Springer the Opera, an offensive anti-Christian shock show which sparked a storm of protest when it was screened by the BBC in 2005, is set to go on stage in Dublin.
The stage show depicts Jesus Christ, God the Father, Mary, Adam, Eve and Satan as warring guests on a special edition of the Jerry Springer chat show staged in Hell.
Jesus is characterised as a foul-mouthed man who hits women, and who admits he is “a bit gay”. God the Father is referred to as the “fascist tyrant on high” and reflects a bisexual character.
Complaints
Simon Delaney, the show’s lead, said about the forthcoming run of Jerry Springer the Opera: “People will come to be offended, and if we haven’t offended you we haven’t done our job.”
In 2005 the BBC decided to broadcast the Opera sparking over 60,000 complaints to the broadcaster. In May 2005, Ofcom also rejected almost 17,000 complaints about the show.
Also in 2005 the High Court refused permission for The Christian Institute to take legal action against the BBC for its broadcast of the show.
Protest
When the show went on a national tour thousands of Christians took to the streets in protest outside theatres resulting in major financial losses for the tour organisers.
Many theatres dropped out and Newcastle’s Theatre Royal made a £16,700 loss, despite records showing that the Arts Council gave the theatre £5,000 of public money to help boost ticket sales.
A DVD of the Opera was available to buy in Sainsbury’s and Tesco, but due to receiving complaints about it, the retailers decided to withdraw it from their shelves.
Jerry Springer the Opera will show at the Grand Canal Theatre, Dublin, from October 31st to November 5th.