Danny Dyer denies being homophobic or racist and claims his ‘laddy’ attitude is misunderstood
The 40-year-old has made a career out of playing straight-talking geezers but Danny insists he's a caring family man
DANNY Dyer vehemently denies being racist, homophobic or misogynistic and claims being a 'lad' has led to him being misunderstood.
The actor, 40, has starred in EastEnders for five years during which he's been credited for his portrayal of a loving dad who accepted his son with open arms when he came out as a gay, but also seen him criticised for using the term "Eyetie" when referring to an Italian supper at the Queen Vic.
Danny, who plays Mick Carter, said the coming out storyline was him down to the ground and praised writer Dominic Treadwell-Collins for seeing there was a depth to him behind his alpha-male stereotype.
He told the: "When they asked me to possibly do EastEnders I assumed it was going to be a gangster, go up against Phil Mitchell, come in with a sawn-off shotgun. It was the complete opposite. One of the first things Dominic said to me was ‘you’re going to be an alpha male, love your family, you’re going to have a gay son, he’s going to come out to you and you’re going to be fine with it’.”
Danny added: “I loved that. He [Dominic] got me [despite] never meeting me before.
“He read some interviews. And I have got this perception of me. I have been called a misogynist, some people called me homophobic or racist because I am a lad. None of it is true whatsoever.”
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Back in January EastEnders sparked a sparked a race row after Mick Carter used "Eyetie" while discussing the Queen Vic's Italian supper night and viewers were furious at the use of the term that originated in World War 2 to describe Italians.
"@bbceastenders Are you kidding me? This day & age we are still referring Italians as I Ti!!??? Disgusting racist comment from EastEnders!!!" wrote one viewer.
"Erm... #eastenders... isn't Eyetie a bit of a slur?" asked another while a third tweeted: "Maybe it's just me, but I thought 'Eyetie' was a fairly taboo term these days?! #EastEnders"
Another added: "I just sat there with my mouth open - Eyetie is Al Garnet language - @bbceastenders - it's difficult to even place that term to the 70s.
"I'd suggest your white middle class writers @bbceastenders need to get a grip."
He added: "It's difficult to comprehend why an offensive term like Eyetie got through a script edit - appalling @bbceastenders #eastenders."
The Miriam Webster dictionary lists the word as "often disparaging + offensive" term for Italians.
A BBC spokesperson told The Sun Online: “The character is well-known for using slang – or in this case an old-fashioned term that has fallen out of general use – but it was not aimed at anyone and never intended to offend.”
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