So far, both the single and the video of 'The Barry Williams Show' have been banned from daytime airplay on TV and some radio stations, why? read on...
'The Barry Williams Show' is said to break down like this: "It looks at the outer limits of reality TV and examines how confessional TV and dysfunctional behaviour feed off each other. It's eponymous character, although fictional, bears more than a hint of Jerry Springer and the video further reflects this."
while the song is already controversial due to it's "hard hitting lyrics" about trash TV, paedophiles, prostitution and bondage, the video carries on this "dark but humorous vein" and is officially banned from broadcast before the watershed of 9pm by the ITC, but as you'll have noticed, we've got pictures of it, so make sure you don't look untill after 9pm...
The video features 'The Barry Williams TV set' with the host playing ringmaster to a guest list of social misfits, including bondage lovers, balaclavared perverts, erotic dancers and a baying crowd. Gabriel is the story teller who observes the scene with devilish delight as the
show turns to bloodshed.
Peter Gabriel had this to say: "I called up Sean because I think that he's a very good director and for the video I wanted something that was quite dark but had some guts to it as well as some humour and I thought he would do that well. On this video, I've had comparatively little input, I've thrown in a few ideas but it's really Sean's baby."
Peter Gabriel has actually had a long association with real film directors such as Martin Scorcese, Alan Parker and Phillip Noyce. However this is the first time that he has collaborated with an established Hollywood director on one of his videos.
As you're sure to now rush out and buy this because it's been banned, 'The Barry Williams Show' is out next monday, the 9th of sepember and is the first single to be taken fromthe forthcoming album 'UP' which is released on September 23rd.