The Amateur Hounding Of Rufus

Rufus Hound is a well-known comedian and comic actor. He has appeared on a number of different programmes, on different channels run by different broadcasting organisations. And he is standing in the European Parliament (EP) elections, for the National Health Action (NHA) Party. In pursuit of his campaign, he has had a dig at Young Dave and Jeremy Hunt (the former Culture secretary).

So far, so routine, but then, his tweaking of Cameron and Hunt (no Spoonerisms, please) has come to the attention of the otherwise not gainfully employed yet still loathsome Toby Young, who has wound himself up into a state of faux outrage and declared that he will thcweam and thcweam until the BBC takes notice of him. This tactic has been spectacularly unsuccessful.

But help was at hand: Damian Thompson, clueless pundit of no fixed hair appointment, weighed in on Tobes’ behalf. He too has declared that the BBC must not merely take notice of both himself and his pal, but has also assured anyone not yet asleep that he too will thcweam and thcweam until it does so. Both these less than august beings believe they are in the right. So what is their problem?

Rufus Hound authored a blog post entitled “David and Jeremy want your kids to die (unless you’re rich)”. Tobes duly upbraided the NHA Party and made it clear that they should expel him for his “disgusting smear” of Tobes’ party leader. This was followed up with the customary suggestion that his target was somehow disqualified from talking about universal health care because he is well off.

But the clincher for Tobes was that Rufus Hound was a “BBC Comedian”. Sadly, though, this is not only weapons grade bullshit – Hound made his name appearing on Dave and also on shows like ITV’s Celebrity Juice – but a glaringly obvious attempt to score another cheap hit on the Beeb, on which Tobes also appears. He could therefore be equally called a “BBC Pundit”.

Sadly, there was no reply from the BBC, and Hound stood his ground. This was when Dames piled in with another assertion that Hound was a “BBC Comedian”, and his intervention was equally lame and pointless. “If a member of Ukip used such intemperate, inflammatory language, Nigel Farage would be forced to disown him or her. Shouldn't the National Health Action Party do likewise?” blustered Tobes.

What’s “intemperate and inflammatory” about telling the electorate that there is a greater risk of less than satisfactory health care if less money is being spent on the NHS over time, especially with the reforms and “marketisation” being inflicted upon it? So Rufus Hound has used a deliberately dramatic headline? Tobes and Dames ought to look at a few from their own paper before they sound off.

All this less then dynamic duo are garnering is ridicule. No change there, then.