It's like father ted....."father i hear you're a racist now"

Racist or not, what Ron Atkinson said when he thought that he was 'off mic' was very unpleasant and could not be ignored.

Im black and I honestly believe Ron is not a racist, I know there was a big outcry after the comments here made while on-air, but we have to remember that Ron gave black players the breakthrough back in the 1960's when as a manager it was deemed unfashionable to have a black player in your team. My view on it is that in the heat of the moment Ron made a serious error of judgement and a stupid mistake and he was quite rightly punished for it but now we need to move on.

Not only is Ron not a racist he is a pioneer in giving black players a start in the English game...

Ron Atkinson constantly talks like a commentator/pundit. Hes forever talking like a voiceover man. Hes forever saying 'I tell you what'. I tell you what you can always guarantee big Ron starting his first sentence with 'I tell you what'. I bet he gets up in the morning and says 'I tell you what it would be lovely if I can go through a whole day without saying 'I tell you what!

@VoteBNP What am I a traitor to? The influences on our culture have been many and varied, but you like the idea of some White European influence. There's a lot of people in the world and the sooner we grow up and accept that the better. If you want to live in the past you will find that it's gone forever. Any attempt to turn the clock back will end in misery and bloodshed. These matters are not as simple as you seem to think and your instinctive fear is unfounded. Our culture continues to evolve

He had to go, no sensible person can say what he said about Marcel and possibly think it acceptable, he insulted 1 billion people already struggling to gain their humanity from a terrible past that used such words to dehumanise and justify slavery to its people. Sorry he had to go, what an embarrassment.

im a villa fan so i have a love for big ron, to be fair he hardly managed us, just sat on a beach and signed dwight yorke for a track suite or sommat!

Wow that bit on Orlando with the dutch and irish fans was great stuff like that never gets told.

Fair play to big Ron here in joining in with the fun

As racist go, Ron's a bloody nice bloke!

The total irony is that he opened the door for black players when others were closing it…..he just said something out of ignorance and anger….he’s the product of a generation that didn’t know that there are certain things you can’t say….

where do you live?

this is a good show, like the guests and the panel. the right mixture of humour and serious questions.

@VoteBNP I lived in London for many years and have worked most my life. I want to know what this culture is that you keep talking about. I'm not insinuating that British Culture doesn't exist - just that it means different things for different people and race doesn't equate to culture. British culture hasn't ever stopped evolving and changing, neither has humanity - the world will go on changing and the best we can do is learn how to be good human beings regardless. That excludes racism.

is the incident on video on the internet anywhere?

Not a racist bone in his body.

Its not what he said, its the way he said it with so much hatred thats concerning.

ask brendan batson, cyrille regis & laurie cunningham

Atkinson has a desparate air about him in this interview ...

fair play to maxwell for asking the question, he didn't have to!

7 minutes 9 seconds "its alright hip hop, THEY use it quite a lot" ... not doing himself no favours really!

Colin Murphy is as funny as a fart up the nose.

is it just me or can you cut the air with a knife in this interview! you could see everyone of the panalists just waiting to ask him "why did u do it ron?", dara was trying to break the question in gently! car crash TV.

@ColinGasit you don't slip what you don't think. doesn't matter if it was or wasnt on air one shoulnt be calling anyone by a racist tag. signing black player is irrelevant. one can be racist against a race but still marry from that particular race. wise up Colin

@nem700 - Exactly. That's the thing about these bigots. They hide behind words like culture and "Britishness", because they haven't got the balls (or are too ashamed) to say what they really mean. In a strange way, Id probably have more respect for them if they did

What an absolute shame. It's absolutely sickening hearing that dude try to absolve Ron of his racism by blaming it on hiphop, and to hear that dude cite Ron's hiring of black players as proof of his not being racist. That he hired black players does not make him a non-racist. He hired them because he felt they could do a job well with the consequence of their doing their job excellently being his retention of his own job. Also, his hiring of black players served the same purpose as a closeted gay man getting married to a woman, with or without the woman having knowledge of his actual sexuality. But, I am not shocked by the display of racism in this video. This is just classic British subtle, undertone racism. That's why I left the country and came back to China. Best decision i ever made to be sincere. Unfortunately, China and the rest of Asia are being overrun with these racists from Europe

race dynamics in the uk are fascinating. On the one hand, you aren't nearly as hung up on race as americans. but at the same time, a noted racist is easily accepted by everyone.

This was such a blatantly orchestrated attempt to rehabilitate Ron to line him up for the Ireland job. Didn't work, it seems.

Ron is a much loved character of Football and ain’t no racist

"noted racist" lol

He said a racist thing, but I don't think he's a racist. If that makes sense. I'd just say, like is pretty much said below, that the man's actions speak louder than his words.

He looks like a really old version of Robin Williams

Agreed!

on a seperate note...how annoying is that womans laugh, someone please gag her.

My mate just commented on this video using my account and i am very embarrassed on his and my behalf. Colin Murphy is the only one wearing a polo shirt here and having gigged with him I think he is a gent and a legend

And he did jack shit in the course of his career.

oh how i miss the good panel on rte2 not the bull they put on rte1... class clip

So he's a 'noted' racist. Duly noted.

@seankinsellasean he was in top 3 of best last year and at one point he as the best last year and then he got injured and went on a drought

ha, this is the same episode as bosco...

I feel really sorry 4 him. He made 1 bad mistake bt he seems like a decent guy. Jus that 1 mistake cost him

It was just a slightly offhand comment that inferred that a black player was lazy. Shame really, he was a great footballing character.

WeWonTheWar, i hate people complaining about how "black people cant be racist, and thats not fair" it's not about that its because if you look at the ration of people being racist to black people to people being racist to white there is a huge difference. i go to an almost all white school and their are only about 10 ethnic people out of 1400 people, one of them being me and i have had alot of racism so if i say something about white people my friends usually know its a joke or in self defence.

Theres no such country Its 6 counties of Ireland held by force of arms by a foreign government

You so smart masser

Exactly

yea lets here it for indifference!!

Yes it was as bad as it said in the papers Ron! Should watch the documentary called Ron Atkinson am I a racist

@VoteBNP No it's not like saying I am a magpie and you are a pigeon. It's like saying that I am a bird and you are a bird. There is no genetic or physiological difference between the races. We all came from the same ancestor emerging out of Africa some 1-2,00 000 years ago. 'We' didnt evolve in 70,000 years, the species homo sapien - i.e every human on earth today is an off shoot of a great tree of species branching off. CONT

He’s an absolute LEGEND of the game. Cool as fuck

How do a people "get over" there history?

Its amazing to think that people use the fact that he played "The Three Degrees" in his team as saying he's not racist. It's like that favorite phrase "some of my best mates are black"....

yeah ron brought black players through but it wasn't as if he thought i like black people so i'll take pity on them and give the poor things a chance. He did it because they were good, hence making him more money. Purley selfish reasons.

@kady7869 Interesting part of the sentence to take issue with.

Im Irish and Irish people call themselves "Paddy" every day, We affectionally call our National Holiday "Paddys Day" In popular culture black people call themselves the n word all the time! Atkinson came from another time with differant atitudes but i dont believe for one minute that Ron Atkinson is Racist!

Big Ron was from the old school of talking. Comments like that will have been commanplace when he started in the game. He has managed black players and worked on tv long enough since to have maybe curbed his ways but unfortunaltly it seems you cant teach an old dog new tricks.

@trifelgeputinage Oh and I'm not a Marxist, just proud of my family and the people I grew up around - who are all working class people. I don't see eye to eye with all of them but on the whole they're good thoughtful, fair and kind people. I think the same is true for Black and Asian people I've known over the years - I just don't see what it is you think you are being deprived of? My future vision doesn't include 'us vs them' but 'us' - the people - as we are - that will do me. Avanti!

@VoteBNP Your'e just not listening - YOUR culture may be very different from mine, it's absolutely certain that culture in these Islands thousands of years ago would be unrecognisable to you. Even a hundred years ago things were very different. This being the case - what can you mean by 'white culture'? The term has no real meaning. What you may think of as being essentially British I may not. Societies continually evolve, things can change in a lifetime. It's not always easy. CONT

@Predinator2k7 don't be naiive, just becoz u sign black players doesn't necessarily make you non-racial. you only sign players becoz they will make u win football matches. its jst happens that a good proportion of black players are excellent footballers and if one wants to win he 'might' have to recruit the best; regardless of race or background. he might want the services of a black player but stil think he is a superior being than the player. Cant believe pple thumbing up a ridiculous comment

What pisses me off is the way that being on a chat show seems to entitle people to be so disrespectful and hurtful about people - like Wayne Rooney and his wife. Are you talking about the host's use of the word 'they' - before he changes to talk about McGrath?

No Mercy For Cowards

Hola spico! Bueno compadre, como estas?

I think he was the first manager to introduce the first black player to non league football. Something like that :)

Jaysis thats not on at all. Glad he got caught sayin it.

...challenged"

He will forever be racist... no way back for him. He did so much for black players he let himself and them down badly with an absolute moment of madness.

I remember being in a sportsman dinner I was n the urinal having a pee and big ron walked in. He looked at me he said “you alright “ “ yes fine thanks I said. He stood next but one to me in the urinal and started to pee. I farted and couldn’t help but laugh. Big Ron said “ dya think that’s funny do ya ? I said sorry mate if just came out. “ just came out” he said came out and right up my nose “ he said. With laughing I farted again. He at that point went bright red gritted his teeth and said “ hey you do that again and I’ll fucking belt you , I warning you don’t fucking do it again. So I thought who are you talking to. I got the palm of my hand flat and rubbed it backward right across my Swiss roll and whilest he was shaking his tackle I smeared my hand all over the back of his head. He ran after me out of the toilet screaming and shouting what he wasn’t going to do and so on. I turned back whilest running and said come on slap head. It was like a scene out of benny hill. Years later maybe 10/12 I was at another sports dinner night I noticed him walking into the toilet. I thought this is my chance I went in and stood next but one and said “ alright “ he took a second look and said “ fucking not you again “ I said “what “getting ready to fart he “ are you the twat who stole my steak and kidney pie at the last sports dinner ? I said yeah it was me sorry Ron. He said it’s just fun don’t worry about it. Then I farted shoved my hand down my pants right up my ring and then slapped it on his heap and said do one slap head and ran out the toilet

Did that thing really just call Coleen Rooney ugly. Fuck me love haha.

Wooooooooooooooo, Go Mrs. Doyle!

No black housemates in the CBB house this year

Just a word right...?? See that right there is where the problem lies... You see it as just a word, you need to check the history books. You wouldn't just forget 300 years for murder would you? I just wished it, ignorant people actually do what they wish...

4 countries in d UK? England, Scotland, Wales, hmm I seem 2 hav missed 1?????????

@MrNodzilla The difference was that woman wasn't actually pakistani.

"I can't resist a bit of racism..." Are you 6 years old?

Bollocks. Ron was one of the first managers to sign black players.

Marcel Desailly won more than Big Ron Big Ron cant clean Marcels boots

You sound pretty clever. Why do you think that?

He isn't racist

Read what I said where dose it mention taking land from Unionists? Its about self determination, an end 2 British rule no one expects Unionists 2 leave. Our history is part of who we are so saying get over it is stupid. Compensation has being paid out on both side. How has any thing I've said "destroyed" Irelands reputation?

Now now no need 2 get abusive lets be civil about this if you can't argue your point you probably shouldn't leave comments about subjects you don't understand

ill second that

also is it possible to be racist and anti-racist synonymously? That's what I think Big Ron is

you only had to type it once!!!!!!!. he is still a legend evrybody makes mistakes

im referring to this video not the desailly incident, how is his comments in this video racist? how does referring to black hip hop artists as 'They' have racist undertones? read the comment and the video description properly plz

@trifelgeputinage It's easy to understand that people are afraid of change and of the 'other' - I like Britain, but then I was born here. It used to be a very different place - I am part of a lucky generation that grew up in a time of peace and prosperity. But we live in a big world modern world now - things have changed irrevocably and we can't turn back the clock. We should try to be good human beings regardless of our religion or race. Ideology and emotion can lead to some horrific results.

It's more than a political opinion it is a fact that there is an armed force preventing a 32 county republic, and 2 recognize the existence of "northern Ireland" is 2 legitimize a false state created by the English Government. The 6 counties are a part of Ireland historical and geographically that is a fact!

Sold a player for champagne. Sounds like slavery this man is disgusting

He brought black players into the English game. He's old school, he was brought up in a erea, I think he's paid more than enough for a comment. Don't get me wrong. It was a huge mistake however he did a lot for black footballers in the English game. I'd rather remember him for that if i'm honest. He's a football man

I do not understand. What difference does me being white, make in playing sports? or doing anything for that matter, why do you need to see your "own" people playing these sports and not blacks, browns, or asian? If you cannot answer that logically then why are you expressing such racially slanderous views on youtube?

I sorry but the guy who stated the Uk is the most racist place really needs to get with the plot. Frances racist party got the final round of their presidential elections a few years ago; US actions and attitude towards African-Americans and other racial minorites is hardly desirable; Racial chanting at football matches only happens on the continent today. Shall I go on?

Noted racist? Not in my opinion. He had many black players, he was also quoted as saying no matter what colour they were, as long as they did a job for WBA they were in. He just doesn't engage his brain before speaking. Would dearly love to see him instead of that wally Pleat on ITV.

What is your basis for this racial prejudice?

His problem is he says stuff in public most people say around mates IN JEST. I'd say he's more naive than racist.

@dimgwalltameiben , yes. Although there can be a scale of fat...maybe your against someone who's really really fat but not someone who's just a bit overweight...the word in itself doesn't denote that however.

I'm not bitter, I'm an Irish republican, its not up to us to impress the Unionists there has to be understanding and compromise on both sides most Unionists if met and spoken 2 understand this and my point of view better than any English man/woman has. The fact that you would say its in the past get over it shows how removed you are and how little you know about the people and situation in the 6 counties.

@adz124ps Whats political correctnees?

The ironic thing zig zag zog is that as manager of West Brom, he did more to promote the interests of black players than any other manager. West Brom in the 70's were the first side to have a spine of black players. Why it was so surprising and shocking ... people should know that...course he deserved to lose his job though which he did

yea so do black rappers ???

He's just a product of his era - a simple product of his era I should say. Footballers in general aren't noted as great thinkers, never mind forward thinkers. I'm sure he is prejudiced, most of us are, but not actively racist.