Ricky Gervais insists he was NOT gagged at Golden Globes... as awards boss brands jibes 'unacceptable'

By BAZ BAMIGBOYE and SARA NATHAN

Close to the knuckle: Host Ricky Gervais left the Golden Globes audience gasping as he made an outrageous joke about the sexuality of an unnamed Scientologist actor

Ricky Gervais today insisted he had not been carpeted at the Golden Globes after subjecting a room full of speechless American stars to lewd jibes at last night's ceremony.

He vanished from the stage in the middle of the awards show, leading to speculation that he had been carpeted. Viewers said that when he returned some time later he looked subdued.

A spokesperson for the comedian today called rumours he was chastised by bosses 'utter rubbish' fueled by 'Twitter speculation.'

Gervais insists the the mood backstage was 'great' and his extended time away from the camera was planned.

'I did every single introduction I was meant to. There just happened to be a long gap,' Gervais told the New York Daily News via email.

Tickled: Johnny Depp, a self-declared Anglophile, laughed at Gervais's dig about him and his latest film The Tourist

'This is because I was allowed to choose who I would introduce in advance. I obviously chose presenters who I had the best jokes for. (And who I knew had a good sense of humour). Everyone took it well and the atmosphere backstage and at the after show was great.'

Well, not everyone. Today the president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association blasted the comedian for his routine, saying he had 'crossed the line' with some of his jokes.

It's unclear if HFPA President Philip Berk will support Gervais coming back next year for a third time.

'Some of the things he said were totally unacceptable,' he told The Hollywood Reporter.

Berk added: 'He definitely crossed the line. And some of the things were totally unacceptable. But that's Ricky. Any of the references to individuals is certainly not something the Hollywood Foreign Press condones.'

But Berk also dismissed claims that the British comic was either fired or told off when he was missing for an hour during the show.

He dismissed those rumours as being 'ridiculous.'

He says: 'He was never called on the carpet, or given a warning or anything else.'
Of course, Berk had earlier been on the receiving end of one of Gervais' jibes.

The comedian announced that Eva Longoria have 'the daunting task' of introducing Berk, the association's president.
'That's nothing,' Gervais added. 'I just had to help him off the toilet and pop his teeth in.'

Before offering his greetings to the audience, Berk, wearing a tight smile, said: 'Ricky, next time you want me to help you qualify your movie, go to another guy.'

During the three-hour ceremony the 49-year-old insulted just about everyone in the film industry.

Taking a pop at Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp for their film The Tourist, he said: ‘Seems like everything this year was three-dimensional. Except the characters in The Tourist.

Just smile, darling: Gervais also took a pop at Angelina Jolie, seen here with Brad Pitt, as he slated her latest film The Tourist

‘I tell you what, I’m jumping on the bandwagon, because I haven’t even seen The Tourist. Who has?’

Gervais also took a dig at the Hollywood Foreign Press, who were the evening's hosts, for nominating Burlesque after being bribed with tickets to a Cher concert.

He added that it wasn't a halfway decent bribe anyway because no one has wanted to go to a Cher concert since 1975.

Sense of humour failure: Robert Downey Jnr didn't take too kindly to Gervais's wisecracks and hit out at the comedian as he presented an award

To gasps from the Beverly Hills audience, he referred to one film featuring ‘two heterosexual actors pretending to be gay, so the complete opposite of some famous Scientologists then’.

Gervais added: 'My lawyers helped me with the wording of that joke.'

Insulted: Hollywood Foreign Press Association President Philip Berk told Gervais to find someone else to qualify his movies

The comedian also said that Sex And The City 2 should have won the special effects award for ‘the team that airbrushed that poster’.

'Girls, we know how old you are. I saw one of you in an episode of Bonanza.'

And he introduced Robert Downey Jr by saying: ‘Many of you in this room probably know him best from such facilities as the Betty Ford Clinic and Los Angeles County Jail.’

Sauntering on stage, Downey took a little bow, then quipped: 'Aside from the fact that it's been hugely mean-spirited, with mildly sinister undertones, I'd say the vibe of the show is pretty good so far, wouldn't you?'

Bruce Willis was unimpressed after Gervais referred to him as ‘Ashton Kutcher’s dad’. (Kutcher is married to Willis’s ex-wife, Demi Moore, and is stepfather to their three daughters.)

He walked on to stage and said pointedly: 'Some people get very lucky in Hollywood, don't they Ricky',

Gervais also let rip when he introduced Toy Story's Tim Allen and Tom Hanks.
He went into a lengthy list of all of Hanks's achievements and accolades over the years before adding: 'The other ... is Tim Allen.'

Hanks said: 'We can recall back when Ricky Gervais was a slightly chubby but very kind comedian.'

And Allen added: 'Neither of which he is now.'

In on the act: Tom Hanks and Tim Allen took a pop at Gervais saying he was no longer fat - but also no longer funny

Troubled Two And A Half Men star Charlie Sheen was lampooned too.

'It's going to be a night of partying and heavy drinking,' Gervais began his monologue, sipping from a glass of what looked like beer.

'Or, as Charlie Sheen calls it, breakfast.'

As the ceremony continued, it became clear that Gervais had been absent from the stage for a long time. TV host Piers Morgan wrote on Twitter: ‘Gervais not seen for an hour now. What the hell happened.’

He wrote that when Gervais returned to the stage, he looked ‘haunted’.

The New York Times wrote: ‘It was Mr Gervais’s second chance to host the Golden Globes; he may not get a third.’

The Los Angeles Times said his jokes set 'a corrosive tone' for the night, while TV critic Mary McNamara said: 'The opposite of dull and deferential is not snotty and abusive.'

'It would not have been surprising to see a hook emerge suddenly stage left or to learn that the host had taken 'suddenly ill',' she added.

However, he did have some support, Entertainment Weekly's Ken Tucker had nothing but praise for him: 'Thanks once again to Ricky Gervais for bringing the sort of funny rudeness and effrontery... that make an awards show such as the Golden Globes engaging to watch.'

Genius: Sean 'Diddy' Combs and Andrew Garfield praised Gervais

High expectations: Ricky poses on the red carpet with his partner Jane Fallon before he went on to upset most of Hollywood

Gervais received support from rapper and actor Sean 'Diddy' Combs, who said he was 'really enjoying it' and that the comedian was 'doing an excellent job'.

Rising British actor Andrew Garfield admitted it had been a cringe-worthy performance: 'He's been terribly nasty and horribly rude and I think he's genius.'

Fellow Brit Christian Bale said he didn’t feel Gervais pushed the envelope enough and added: 'Thank God for comedians, they have the most important job. I hope he keeps going further!'

The comedian himself admitted he had not been asked back after the show. ‘That’s ominous, isn’t it? So I probably won’t be here next year.’