American Netflix bosses were left confused over a Peter Kay comment (Picture: ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
Peter Kay sparked concern among Netflix bosses after confusion over a joke from Wallace and Gromit.
The comedian, 51, appeared as Chief Inspector Mackintosh in the beloved franchise’s return over Christmas, marking his first TV role in four years.
His character shouted the phrase ‘Flippin’ Nora’ as penguin villain Feathers McGraw escaped in Vengeance Most Fowl.
However, his iconic line caused some confusion with US Netflix bosses with concerns it was ‘rude’, it’s been revealed.
Creator Nick Park told The Sun: ‘Peter ad-libs quite a lot.
‘At one point he’s astonished at something and shouts “Flippin Nora”.
‘One day we did get a note back to ask “Who is Nora and why is she being flipped?”‘
The comedian has made his TV comeback in Vengeance Most Fowl as Chief Inspector Mackintosh (Picture: BBC/Aardman Animations/Richard Davies/Stuart Collis)
Mackintosh first appeared in 2005’s Curse of the Were-Rabbit (Picture: Wallace & Gromit)
Creative director Merlin Crossingham revealed that the team then had to explain to the Americans that the term wasn’t ‘rude’.
‘It’s not rude, it’s not an expletive, it’s an innocent turn of phrase,’ he said.
This isn’t the first time Peter has had to clear things up after leaving US audiences baffled, having previously apologised for jokes about car boot sales and British celebrities at the end of a 2009 stand-up show in LA.
He told the audience: ‘I’m sorry if you found that hard to understand but there was comedy in there somewhere.’
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Peter’s ‘Flippin’ Nora’ left some people confused (Picture: Brian J Ritchie/Hot Sauce/REX/Shutterstock)
Peter took a break from the limelight in 2017, and was last seen on TV in 2020’s Car Share alongside Sian Gibson.
He played supermarket assistant manager John Redmond, with Sian as checkout girl Kayleigh Kitson.
The first series was filmed in and around Peter’s native Bolton, as well as Manchester, and won Best Comedy at the 2016, 2018 and 2019 National Television Awards, and the BAFTA TV Awards for Best Male Comedy Performance and Best Scripted Comedy at the 2016 BAFTA TV Awards.
The series came to an end in May 2018 when two special episodes broadcast on 7 and 28 May.
He was last seen on TV in 2020’s Car Share alongside Sian Gibson (Picture: PA)
It’s also been 20 years since Peter and Paddy McGuinness’ Phoenix Nights spin-off, Max and Paddy’s Road to Nowhere (Picture: Mark Campbell/REX/Shutterstock)
Ahead of his TV comeback, creator Nick told Metro it was ‘fabulous’ to get the Inside No. 9 star back.
‘There’s only two characters that have ever been brought back now in the Wallace and Gromit films, and that’s Feathers McGraw and PC McIntosh,’ he exclusively told Metro.
‘The big fear was that we couldn’t get him because for as long as we’ve been filming, he’s been in the middle of a massive tour,’ Nick went on, but thankfully, the lure of the first Wallace and Gromit feature film in almost 20 years was too much for Peter to turn down.
‘He replied to a letter that we wrote and said he’d love to do it,’ he added. ‘He somehow fitted it in, incredibly! So we’re very grateful for that.’
He added: ‘He understands funny, you know? We don’t have to tell him how to be funny, that’s been a gift for us!’
Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl is available to watch on BBC iPlayer, and will be available for overseas audiences from January 3, 2025, on Netflix.
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