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Mr JK
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Elton John loses libel action

Mr JK, 13 December, 2008 at 08:45 Posted on Off Topic Posts 0 4

...and, national treasure though he undoubtedly is, I think this was absolutely the right decision - as the piece he sued over was so clearly and unambiguously a piss-take. Put it like this, if he'd won, the repercussions would have been too hideous to contemplate: Private Eye would almost certainly have to change beyond recognition, as would Have I Got News For You and many, many similar examples.

Here's the offending article (guaranteed libel-free!), and a report on the court case.

4 replies

Latest activity by Mr JK, 13 December, 2008 at 16:37
  • kewbride
    Beginner September 2007
    kewbride ·
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    I agree MrJK, a massive sense of humour failure on Elton's part or the fact the satire was actually pretty spot on - lol

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  • Scarlett03
    Dedicated May 2003
    Scarlett03 ·
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    I hope it doesn't make him too unhappy, we are going to see him on Thursday

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  • Zebra
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    Zebra ·
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    What a stupid thing to get one's knickers in a twist about - and only someone with far too much time and money on his hands would believe they could overcome centuries of satirical tradition.

    Thank goodness the law is not (always) an ass in this country!

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  • kjfc100
    Beginner August 2008
    kjfc100 ·
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    I can't quite believe that Carter Ruck encouraged him to sue in the first place. They have won some frivolous libel cases in the past but they should surely have seen that there was only ever going to be one outcome in this case. And now they want to be granted leave to appeal? More money down the drain.

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  • Mr JK
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    Mr JK ·
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    The real irony is that Elton John was one of the most successful libel litigants of all time when he took on the Sun in the late 1980s, winning both a million quid and a grovelling front-page apology (SORRY ELTON in giant block capitals).

    But in that case he was absolutely right to sue - the Sun basically went completely mental and after printing some stories about dalliances with rent boys that were based on a highly dubious single source, they started making stuff up. It got to the point when every single story they printed about him attracted a libel action, but the seventeenth (!) was the real killer, as it concerned a story that was so clearly and demonstrably untrue (it alleged that Elton's mansion was guarded by "silent assassins" in the form of Rottweillers who'd had their vocal chords removed) that the paper didn't have a leg to stand on. In fact, Elton withdrew the previous sixteen libel suits and focused on that one - knowing full well that the paper couldn't substantiate it.

    But this one's weird - even if you didn't know that Marina Hyde writes a similar piss-taking "diary" every week, it's blindingly obvious from the style along that it's just gentle mockery that absolutely comes with the territory of being a celebrity. And Elton John normally seems to have a sense of humour.

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