Nayana McGee
It’s been a tough few weeks for James Corden. After being called out in October for rude and abusive behaviour towards staff by Balthazar owner Keith McNally, he’s been banned from the restaurant, then unbanned…then banned again? It’s getting quite difficult to keep up. At this point in time, it’s looking like Corden will have to make his lunch reservations elsewhere.
Hospitality Horrors
McNally left no stone unturned in his scrutiny of Corden’s behaviour. His Instagram post dated October 17th outlining his disdain for the comedian included detailed reports of the interaction between Corden and McNally’s staff. The reported behaviour included nasty comments to his server on one occasion, and shouting “like crazy” at a server on another, when the wrong order was brought to his table. He reportedly went on to insinuate that he could do a better job of making the food himself.
“Under no circumstances should it be acceptable to walk into a place of business and disrespect the people that work there.”
Anyone who has ever worked in the restaurant and hospitality industry has had to deal with a James Corden. It comes with the territory. We aren’t, however, all lucky enough to have somebody on our side when events like this transpire. Under no circumstances should it be acceptable to walk into a place of business and disrespect the people that work there. Luckily for the staff of Balthazar, Keith McNally agrees.
Corden a Repeat Offender?
Unfortunately for Corden, this restaurant feud isn’t an isolated incident. If we look back over the course of the last ten years or so, a plethora of discrepancies unfolds that put the nature of Corden’s character into question. In his 2011 memoir ‘May I Have Your Attention, Please?’ he recalls an incident that took place in 2008 at the BAFTAs, where instead of graciously accepting the Audience Award for Television Programme of the Year for his show Gavin and Stacey, he couldn’t get past the fact it hadn’t been nominated for a comedy award.
“Corden has a reputation for rude and brattish behaviour within the entertainment industry”
He instead asked the audience “How can what is apparently the best comedy performance and the television programme of the year not even be nominated as a comedy?”, in behaviour that is comparable to a child throwing a tantrum on Christmas morning because Santa brought him a blue Hot Wheels car when he wanted a red one. Corden himself writes in the memoir that his behaviour was “ungracious, ungrateful and brattish.”
Just two years later, he came under fire for his interaction with Sir Patrick Stewart at the 2010 Glamour Awards, when the pair traded insults that could only have been mirrored from those found on a school playground. Ever since then it has become more apparent that Corden has a reputation for rude and brattish behaviour within the entertainment industry, as more and more rumours have surface regarding the way he treats colleagues and crew members on his projects.
After the news about his trips to Balthazar became public, Corden was praised for addressing the incident and offering his apologies on an episode of his late-night show ‘The Late Late Show with James Corden.’ To give credit where it’s due, yes, he did apologise.
However, the thing about public apologies is that there is always a sense of insincerity about them, as we can’t help but question whether they are made in an attempt to save the culprit’s reputation. Should his apology override his supposed behaviour and allow all to be forgiven? No. And it wasn’t. During a later interview with The London Times, Corden denied any and all of his bad behaviour, resulting in McNally reinstating the ban. It makes his apology look pretty pointless.
The Audacity
This series of events brings to mind one burning question. Where does he get the audacity? We all know what fame and fortune, having more money than sense, and a holier-than-thou complex can do to people, but when did that become an excuse to treat people as if they are beneath you? The one solace we can take great pleasure in is when entitled people are put in their place. In that sense, Keith McNally has done us all a great favour.
Featured image courtesy of K8 on Unsplash. No changes were made to this image. Image license found here.
