Russian TV axes show starring Ukraine's leader after Putin joke

Zelenskiy sitcom lasted just one night after alluding to Putin in crude sub-language

A Russian television channel has abruptly cancelled a sitcom starring Ukraine’s president after an allusion to a crude joke about Vladimir Putin was aired in Russia’s far east.

The political satire Servant of the People served as a platform for the former comedian Volodymyr Zelenskiy to gain popularity and eventually win the Ukrainian presidency, in a vote largely driven by anger at the country’s previous leaders.

But with sharp jokes directed against Putin, many wondered how long the series would last on Russia’s carefully controlled airwaves.

The answer was less than one night.

After quickly editing out a joke made at Putin’s expense in the season’s premiere, the television channel TNT subsequently cancelled its broadcast of later airings of the 23-episode season, replacing them with sitcoms that were less likely to rile the Kremlin.

TNT did not immediately reply to requests from the Guardian for comment. It told Vedomosti, the Russian business newspaper, that it had never planned to air the whole season, and that the broadcast was a “marketing ploy” for its online streaming service. The episode is still available there.

Servant of the People follows the fictionalised Zelenskiy’s unlikely rise from high-school teacher to Ukraine’s president after his rant against corruption goes viral.

In the season’s premiere Zelenskiy, playing the role of Ukraine’s new president, is selecting a new watch to match those worn by other leaders.

Putin, he is told, wears a Hublot.

“Putin’s a Hublot?” Zelenskiy responds.

The word Hublot resembles another that translates, less crudely, to the word “dick” in Russian’s swearing sub-language known as Mat. The phrase “Putin’s a dick”, using the swearword, became a popular slogan after the outbreak of the conflict in south-east Ukraine, and could be heard at anti-Putin rallies and seen in graffiti dabbed on walls across Ukraine.

It is not clear whether that joke was enough to cause the show’s cancellation, as the series features a number of jokes about Russia and Putin. But in broadcasts of Servant of the People broadcast later on Wednesday night, including those shown in Moscow, the joke had been edited out. The edit was first reported by the BBC’s Russian service.

Lentach, a Russian website that combines news and humour, put together a simple map showing which parts of Russia had and had not heard “Putin is a Hublot”.

TNT, a Russian television station that focuses on sitcoms and comedy shows, announced it would debut the show just days after Zelenskiy and Putin met for high-stakes talks in Paris on the conflict in east Ukraine. It was the first meeting between the two leaders.

The show was advertised to Russian viewers as a counterpoint to Zelenskiy’s real presidency. “For viewers, the television series became a utopia with no real relation to the Ukraine of Zelenskiy,” the television station wrote in a release.

Television is a carefully controlled medium in Russia, and programmes that have made fun of Putin have quickly been booted off air. The most famous was in 2002 when the show Puppets, which featured a fake version of Putin and was inspired by the show Spitting Image, was abruptly cancelled.

Contributor

Andrew Roth in Moscow

The GuardianTramp

Related Content

Article image
Ukraine's new president comes face to face with Putin in Paris
Volodymyr Zelenskiy to meet Russian counterpart at summit on Kyiv’s five-year war with Russian separatists

Andrew Roth in Moscow and Patrick Wintour in London

08, Dec, 2019 @2:53 PM

Article image
Putin admits to ‘complicated’ situation in Russian-occupied Ukraine
Remarks highlight Moscow’s growing acknowledgement that invasion is not going to plan

Pjotr Sauer

20, Dec, 2022 @5:14 PM

Article image
Standing up to Putin: how Russian threat has toughened up Ukraine’s Zelenskiy
Actor turned president has undergone profound political transformation in the face of Russian aggression

Luke Harding in Kyiv and Andrew Roth in Moscow

20, Dec, 2021 @5:00 AM

Article image
Kremlin drone incident: Zelenskiy denies Russian claim Ukraine attempted to kill Putin
Ukraine president denies involvement, saying ‘we fight on our territory and defend our towns and cities’ after Kremlin blames Kyiv

Pjotr Sauer and Dan Sabbagh

04, May, 2023 @1:18 AM

Article image
Putin appears to admit severe Russian losses in Ukraine
Ukrainian army making ‘fast and powerful progress’ in south, says Volodymyr Zelenskiy

Isobel Koshiw in Kyiv and Peter Beaumont in Kryvyi Rih

05, Oct, 2022 @6:09 PM

Article image
Ukraine releases video appearing to show Russian troops beating own wounded officer
Footage thought to show Wagner group fighters beating commander with what appear to be shovels
Warning: video contains footage that some viewers may find distressing

Luke Harding in Kyiv

07, Feb, 2023 @1:04 PM

Article image
Three Russian servicemen dead after Ukrainian drone attack, Moscow says
Defence ministry says drone was shot down on approach to Engels airbase but falling debris killed three

Pjotr Sauer

26, Dec, 2022 @3:10 PM

Article image
Ukraine declares full control of Lyman after Russian forces pull out
Volodymyr Zelenskiy confirmed his troops had liberated the key eastern city, marking an embarrassing set back for Putin

Luke Harding in Kyiv

02, Oct, 2022 @2:45 PM

Article image
Putin promised me he would not kill Zelenskiy, says former Israeli PM
Naftali Bennett says Putin also dropped vow to seek disarmament of Ukraine and Zelenskiy agreed to give up on joining Nato

Bethan McKernan in Jerusalem

05, Feb, 2023 @12:49 PM

Article image
Putin vows to ‘knock down’ US Patriot missiles supplied to Ukraine
Russian president dismisses weapon as ‘outdated’ as he implies Kyiv will have to cede territory for peace

Luke Harding

22, Dec, 2022 @6:06 PM