Hollywood superstar Russell Crowe has revealed why his BAFTA speech was cut in 2002 – and why it made him so angry.
He appeared on the Late Late Show with Ryan Tubridy and they spoke about the awards night and the multiple factors that led to him feeling so overcome with anger.
Crowe won the Best Actor Bafta for his performance in the Ron Howard classic ‘A Beautiful Mind’. When he took to the stage to accept his award he read a short poem by Irish writer Patrick Kavanagh.
However, the speech was cut from the BBC broadcast which led to the infamous incident which saw the star pin a producer up against a wall and hurl expletives in his face.
Crowe was criticised for the incident and has since admitted that his actions were ‘inappropriate’ and ‘overbearing’.
At the time it was suspected that Crowe was angry about the poem being cut – but he said that he was more upset because the producer had cut a section of the speech where Crowe thanked mathematician John Nash, who he portrayed in A Beautiful Mind.
However, now Crowe has revealed to Irish chat star Ryan Tubridy that it was about the poem being cut.
He said: “Richard Harris taught me a poem called Sanctity, we had been at a great dinner party and he just slayed the room with this poem, it just got under my skin.
“It just felt really personal, and it was only a four-line poem.
“So I said it at the BAFTA’s and made myself extremely unpopular – then they cut it out. I was told Kavanagh’s not supposed to be read on the BBC.”
Crowe also admitted that some of his anger had come from the feeling that he hadn’t delivered his speech as well as he could.
He said: “Then that made me a little p***y. I wanted Richard Harris to be sitting at home watching it that night cheering.
“But I delivered the speech in such a bad way, so I was just really p***y about that moment as well.
“When I look back, I think what was the point of getting so upset about it.”
The BBC may not like Kavanagh but at Ireland Calling we think he’s one of Ireland’s great writers.
Here is the poem that caused all the trouble:
To be a poet and not know the trade
To be a lover and repel all women
Twin ironies by which great saints are made
The agonising pincer-jaws of Heaven
Take a look at the video below.
Written by Michael Kehoe @michaelcalling