Jimmy Carr allegedly sought to end his two-decades-long feud with his 80-year-old father—before cutting him off again shortly after.
The comedian, known for his stand-up and hosting panel shows such as 8 Out of 10 Cats and The Big Fat Quiz of the Year, is the son of Jim Carr.
Jimmy, 52, has never made a secret of their strained, or perhaps nonexistent, relationship.
In 2021, he revealed that they hadn’t spoken since 2000 and he had not seen his father either, with the exception of signing an autograph after a gig in 2015, but without having a conversation.
Now, however, a friend of Jim’s has claimed Jimmy reached out to him to ask for a favour, which gave his father hope that they were about to patch things up.
However, he was soon met with silence once more.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, the source said the Irish-born businessman received a phone call out of the blue almost eight years ago in which Jimmy asked if he would ‘take on a burden’ for him.
‘It was just before Christmas in 2017, and Jimmy rang his dad to ask him for some help with a problem he had,’ they began. ‘He had been supporting someone close to him but just couldn’t continue doing so.’
‘Jim has never told me the full details, preferring to keep it private, but it was a big favour to ask, and obviously Jimmy felt he had nowhere else to turn, given that he hadn’t spoken to his dad for the last 15 or 16 years prior to that phone call,’ they continued.
‘He wanted Jim to take on the burden, which he duly did. But while Jim hoped this good deed could rekindle their relationship, Jimmy seemed to cut him off again.’
The friend claims that, following their exchange via phone, Jimmy ‘didn’t call to thank [his father] or anything’.
‘It was radio silence… which continues to this day,’ the pal added. ‘It’s strange because it was he who instigated that temporary thaw in relations.’
Jim is said to still be ‘mystified as to what actually caused Jimmy to fall out with him in the first place,’ as he ‘doesn’t know what he’s supposed to have done wrong’ since Jimmy has ‘never told him’.
‘Jimmy is a comedian who is forever joking about being cancelled because of the nature of his jokes—but that is what he’s done effectively to his own father.’
As far as Jim is concerned, though, he believes any past issues are ‘water under the bridge’.
Since he is very close to his other two sons, Jim would ‘like to reunite with Jimmy’ and also meet his grandson. Jimmy and his long-time partner, Karoline Copping, welcomed a son named Rockefeller in 2019.
‘Life is too short to keep up these sorts of grievances—Jim loves his son and hopes that they can at least start talking again.’
One of those so-called grievances is a comment Jimmy made in his 2022 memoir, Before & Laughter.
At the time, the Isleworth-born comic referred to Limerick, his parents’ hometown in Ireland, as a ‘s**t town’.
‘I might seem urbane, but I’m the son of two immigrants from Limerick who moved to Slough (they moved from a s**t town to another s**t town; I guess they knew what they liked,’ he penned.
Upset, Jim was on the verge of suing his son for defamation and demanded a public apology.
He told the Limerick Leader at the time that Jimmy had ‘crossed the line’, calling his comments ‘offensive’ and ‘derogatory’. He also called for the mayor of Limerick and the Limerick City and County Council to revoke an honour Jimmy received in 2013.
It’s believed that Jimmy and Jim were close until shortly after Jimmy’s mother, Nora, died from pancreatitis in 2001.
While details of their feud are unknown, Jimmy has made his feelings clear in the past.
Speaking on Rob Beckett and Josh Widdicombe’s Parenting Hell podcast four years ago, he said: ‘I haven’t seen my father in 21 years, and, you know the line, “My mother’s dead and my father’s dead to me”—which sounds very cold until you meet the guy.
‘I can’t have that guy in my life.’
Jimmy also has two brothers: Colin, a banker, and Patrick, an actor.
Reps for Jimmy Carr have been contacted for comment.
Got a story?
If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.
