BBC Breakfast Sally Nugent and Jon Kay were left in the middle of a humorous but inadvertent experience on live television recently. During a report on the Denton Calendar Boys—a group of men who stripped for a charity calendar—the BBC Breakfast Sally Nugent and Jon Kay couldn’t help but crack up, and it led to a laugh-inducing interaction that fueled debates from viewers.
The morning show, with its mix of tough news and lighter material, made a strange side trip into the bizarre when BBC Breakfast’s Sally Nugent and Jon Kay covered the Denton Calendar Boys. Based on the notorious Calendar Girls, the men posed nude to benefit the hospitals in their hometown.
Jon Kay showed during the segment a video of Katy Perry discussing her record-breaking space flight on Jeff Bezos‘ Blue Origin rocket. The singer, and five other women, were to travel into space with the aim of inspiring young girls to pursue science and exploration opportunities.
Telling Sally Nugent, Jon said, “Would you?”—whether she would agree to go to space herself. Sally, surprised for a moment, replied, “Inspire young girls to go to space in the future?” Jon explained, “No, go to space?!”
Without hesitation, BBC Breakfast Sally Nugent laughed and firmly replied, “No! Not in a million!” Her quick dismissal of the idea led to an amusing exchange between the presenters, with Jon agreeing that he wouldn’t go either. Sally then joked, “We’re not good travelers!”
Whereas some of the viewers thought that the reaction was funny, others felt that the presenters’ response was not professional. There was mixed social media opinion where some people laughed at the funniness of the reaction and others criticized the presenters for behaving in a serious news section.
Some of the comments even went to the extent of insinuating that the reaction could probably have been otherwise if the women’s segment was hosting, due to the issues of gender perceptions about media reporting.
BBC Breakfast Sally Nugent and Jon Kay are never anything short of respected for their effortless on-screen chemistry, blending serious news with engaging human-interest stories. But the programme brought out the fine line required to hold it together when dealing with lighter fare on live TV.
While there was a varied response, the session reminded audiences of the spontaneity of live television. BBC Breakfast Sally Nugent and Jon Kay’s banter created a humorous spin on the breakfast television show and demonstrated that even the most tedious reading of news has its moment of surprise. Lighthearted or biting, the segment certainly made people sit up and take notice and reaffirm the dynamic and lively nature of live television.
