Comedian Nigel Ng aka ‘Uncle Roger’ banned on Chinese social media for jokes
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Salma Hossein
- . May 23, 2023
- . Update: May 23, 2023 6:59 pm
In what seems to be the latest crackdown by Beijing on comedians, Nigel Ng’s Chinese social media accounts have been suspended.
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The London-based Malaysian comic is known for posting videos on YouTube as the character ‘Uncle Roger’. He tweeted a promo clip for his upcoming show last Tuesday in which he poked fun at China’s authoritarian government.
Ng was performing as ‘Uncle Roger’ at the time and joked he was “about to get cancelled”. His Weibo and Bilibili accounts – considered the Twitter and YouTube of China – were suspended at the weekend.
He used to have more than 400,000 followers on his Weibo account. Following the suspension, a message on the account now reads: “The user has been banned from posting as he has violated relevant laws and regulations.”
The comedian, however, reposted the video on Twitter last Monday with the caption: “For some reason, this clip got a ton of views this past weekend. I wonder why.”
In the video, Uncle Roger was heard speaking to someone in the audience. When the person said he was from China, the comedian was heard replying: “Good country … We have to say that now.” Further, he joked about Beijing monitoring him through his smartphone.
“They [are] all listening … Long live President Xi.”
Nevertheless, this isn’t the first time Ng had a clash with the strict media environment of China. Just a couple of years back, he collaborated with YouTuber Mike Chen, who is a known critic of Beijing, to produce a video where the two critiqued a dumpling recipe.
But the comedian eventually removed the video and posted an apology.
With the suspension of his accounts, he seems to be the latest target in what appears to be a deepening crackdown on comedians by Beijing.
Chinese comedian Li Haoshi was arrested last week after he tried cracking a joke comparing his dogs to a military slogan. Although he has already apologised for his comments, he could still receive an imprisonment sentence of three years.
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The company that hired Li was also penalised.
Do you think stand-up comedy is now on the verge of getting wiped out in China?
