'There isn't a racist bone in Brendan O'Carroll's body' - Joe Duffy supports close friend

RTÉ star Joe Duffy has dismissed any suggestions that comedian and actor Brendan O'Carroll, his close friend of 30 years, is in any way racist.

Mr Duffy - the highest paid broadcaster at RTÉ - made his comments on Livelive on RTÉ Radio 1 this Tuesday afternoon shortly after he confirmed that the Mrs Brown's Boys star will be joining him "come hell or high water" for a special outside broadcast on Grafton Street in Dublin on Christmas Eve.

On Monday, Brendan O’Carroll apologised over a “clumsy” joke where a “racial term was implied” during rehearsals for the upcoming Christmas and New Year specials of Mrs Brown’s Boys.

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The BBC temporarily paused rehearsals to investigate the incident, which have since resumed in Glasgow at the broadcaster’s Pacific Quay studios in Scotland – with recording and production of the shows going ahead as planned.

Commenting on the controversy, Joe Duffy said: "I’ve known Brendan O’Carroll for 30 years, I’ve been everywhere with him - not just Christmas Eve, not just in this studio or in the old (RTÉ) radio centre, not just on The Late Late Show, not just out in Florida with him when he was performing - there isn't a racist bone in Brendan O'Carroll’s body I’m telling you that straight," he told listeners.

"His main thing is to write comedy and he does it. He produces, he directs, he puts it together.  He has an enormous hands-on role in rehearsals - he is trying to come up with new angles, new gags or whatever - and that’s why he is so successful but I suspect he has so many enemies here and the UK that they will jump on this," he added.

Earlier, the actor and comedian, who is originally from Finglas in Dublin said: “At a read-through of the Mrs Brown’s Boys Christmas specials, there was a clumsy attempt at a joke, in the character of Agnes, where a racial term was implied. It backfired and caused offence which I deeply regret and for which I have apologised.”