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Lee Mack has been heavily criticised for mocking speech impediments.
The comedian, who is a regular on Would I Lie To You?, has come under fire from STAMMA, the British Stammering Association, for jokingly stumbling over his words in an episode of the BBC panel show.
While poking fun at co-star Rob Brydon, 57, in Friday’s programme, the 54-year-old struggled when saying the word ‘she’.
‘What is she? What is she, Rob?’, Lee laughed after Rob had trouble getting his words out.
‘The suspense is killing me,’ he quipped as the studio audience chuckled.
Lee proceeded to repeat the word ‘she’ several times while squinting his eyes, much to the amusement of the crowd and his colleagues.
Lee Mack has been branded ‘thoughtless’ by the charity STAMMA (Picture: BBC/Zeppotron Ltd/Brian Ritchie)
He mocked co-star Rob Brydon as he struggled to get his words out (Picture: Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock)
‘Are you auditioning for Open All Hours?’, he asked the Gavin & Stacey star as he attempted to finish his original sentence.
Arkwright (played by Ronnie Barker) in the 1970s and 80s sitcom was portrayed as having a stutter for comedic effect.
In response to Lee’s comments, charity STAMMA said it was ‘disheartening’, given how speech impediments impact people’s everyday lives.
‘Around 8% of kids and at least 1% of adults stammer,’ they said in a statement shared with Metro.co.uk.
‘This is our voice, it’s how we talk. The thoughtless ridicule we saw on WILTY offers us a stark choice between being laughed at or being silent.
STAMMA says the jokes were offensive, even if that wasn’t the intention (Picture: BBC/Zeppotron Ltd/Brian Ritchie)
‘We know it wasn’t meant to hurt or offend, but for many who stammer, it does.’
They continued with a powerful message to those who stammer.
‘To all those adults and teens out there who stammer, and all those parents who have kids who stammer, know that there are many people who accept that stammering is simply the way some of us talk.
‘Who make space and time for us in conversation and value our fabulous, stammered voices.’
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CEO Jane Powell also declared: ‘Stammering isn’t a joke, and this isn’t the 70s.
‘Thousands of people who love WILTY – and who stammer – will have watched the show on Friday, and felt uncomfortable and embarrassed watching Lee Mack mock how they talk.
‘It’s a shame the BBC didn’t see that this was worth editing out.’
Reps for Lee Mack have been contacted for comment.
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‘This is our voice, it’s how we talk.’
