Nervous Golden Globe show bosses insist on 'seven second delay' to rein in tricky Ricky Gervais

Some of the most senior TV executives in America are feeling more than a little nervous about Ricky Gervais’s third turn as host of the prestigious Golden Globe Awards in Hollywood on Sunday night.



I’m told executives at the major broadcaster NBC, which will screen the awards live for five hours in primetime, have insisted on a ‘seven-second delay’.



Controversial: Golden Globes host Ricky Gervais usually makes digs at A-list stars The delay lets Dick Clark, the award show’s legendary 83-year-old producer, cut comments about celebs in attendance that are deemed too close-to-the-bone to broadcast.

Cheers! Ricky presenting the 67th Golden Globe's with a half of lager, but this year he is to be reined in

It comes after Gervais (right), controversial star of The Office, upped ratings on the ceremony last year by making digs at A-list stars like Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp.



He has spent the last ten days writing more cutting quips for this weekend’s show, which will screen live here on digital channel E!

Most interest in the UK will focus on the hit ITV drama Downton Abbey, nominated for four awards.

My Hollywood insider explains: ‘NBC loves Ricky because he increased the ratings, but they know he wants to create headlines again and they can’t take the risk of broadcasting something inappropriate.’

Meanwhile Gervais has tweeted about his Globes game plan in the days leading up to the show: 'I keep having to write new jokes as I pick my victims, I mean targets, I mean presenters to introduce. Some great people have confirmed.'

He even assured Twitter followers that he'll be drinking lager, ad-libbing and speaking his mind: 'No one knows what I'm going to say until I say it. That was my only stipulation to host again.'

Living the dream? But will it be a nightmare come Sunday? Ricky Gervais with girlfriend Jane Fallon in Beverly Hills

Last year he was criticised for offending big-name celebrities and members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association which runs the awards show.

Even so when offered the gig again, Gervais apparently wouldn't - consider toning down his act.

It's considered to be bad form to insult the audience at awards shows, but Ricky apparently believes he'll never be asked to host something as conservative as the Oscars, so feels there's no reason to hold back.

And Gervais confirmed his no holds barred approach on his blog in December: 'I would say that there's nothing too offensive in there, but I honestly thought that last year. So I'm not sure of the rules anymore.'

Insiders are predicting many of the jokes will most likely be at the expense of director Brett Ratner, who stepped down as Oscar producer after making an anti-gay slur, and Eddie Murphy, who made the decision not to host after the controversy.



Witt's she on about?

Communication problem? Katarina Witt's delivery is causing concern

She is the controversial and vivacious Olympic ice-skating champion whose shock hiring resulted in a Spice Girl being put on ice.



I’m told there’s a sense of panic among senior staff on the hit ITV series Dancing On Ice after Katarina Witt’s debut performance.



They’re concerned the 46-year-old East German, who replaced Emma Bunton as the show’s glamorous judge, struggled with her delivery on live TV because English is her second language.



Her comments to the celebrity contestants could, at times, not be understood by some viewers. But ITV insists there’s no problem.





Axe sharpened for Royal Bodyguard

Just weeks after Ricky Gervais’s new series Life’s Too Short bombed on BBC2, there has been another bitter blow for BBC comedy.



I’m told corporation chiefs have privately decided to axe the David Jason disaster The Royal Bodyguard after just one series, even though only three episodes have so far been broadcast.



Ratings on the half-hour show - the much-loved Jason’s first comedy series since Only Fools And Horses - have slumped to just under three million viewers, down from seven million on its Boxing Day debut.



A spokeswoman for the programme said: ‘No decision has been made yet and no discussions will take place until after the series has finished.’



CAROL'S A CHAT QUEEN



Chat-fest: Loose Women is back, with Carol Vorderman pushing up ratings

Carol Vorderman is being credited for a steep ratings rise at ITV1’s long-running lunchtime chat-fest, Loose Women.



The former Countdown presenter was brought in by producers as part of a major shake-up of the weekday show after ratings fell to 700,000 last year.



Carol, 51, replaced unlucky Kate Thornton, once fired by Simon Cowell as the original host of The X Factor.



With ratings regularly hitting 1.3 million now, an ITV source says: ‘She has completely refreshed the show. The other new panellists have gone down well, too, but it’s Carol viewers like.’



Fans of talk show host Jeremy Kyle can expect to see much more of him on our screens. The American version of his confrontational morning show is getting a second series and ITV bosses want to buy it to give viewers here a second daily dose of Mr Kyle.





Nostalgia vote: The Munsters could be back on our TV screens

DO THE MUNSTER MASH



A wave of so-called ‘nostalgia TV’ will be coming to screens over the next year.



Major U.S. broadcasters are working on modern versions of classic series The Munsters, Bewitched, The Flinstones and Frankenstein.

