BBC Breakfast hosts Rachel Burden and Ben Boulos have faced criticism following a Sunday segment that didn’t sit well with viewers. The presenters were seen laughing at a viral video showing a couple accidentally damaging museum artwork — a reaction that many at home found inappropriate.
The incident being discussed involved a CCTV clip from the Palazzo Maffei museum in Verona, which has been doing the rounds online. It shows a couple getting a bit too comfortable around the exhibits, with one of them deciding to sit on an art piece — a crystal-covered chair designed in the style of Van Gogh. Unsurprisingly, it didn’t go well, reported the Express.
As the footage aired, Rachel described what happened: “This is footage of a couple who decided to try out a chair, this was a Van Gough style chair covered in crystals inside a museum in Verona.” Then, with a laugh, she continued, “The man decides he’ll try it out, and immediately it collapses.” Ben could be heard sniggering in the background.
The couple quickly bolted from the scene, and Rachel added, “It’s [the chair] left there, looking I think, not necessarily the worst.” Ben then chipped in with, “It now tells a story. Art evolves doesn’t it?” Rachel confirmed that the pair had fled before any staff could even respond, and Ben added jokingly, “Imagine that moment of horror of when it happened; ‘oh dear, we’re in trouble!’”
But the light-hearted tone struck the wrong chord with quite a few viewers. Social media was soon buzzing with people calling the segment “tone deaf” and questioning why the BBC team thought it was funny at all.
One viewer wrote: “I hope they catch the couple from the museum. Also, I don’t understand why #BBCBreakfast are treating it as a laugh and a joke.” Another added, “I don’t think it’s funny at all but it’s tickled Ben.” And someone else pointed out, “Seems to have totally skipped over the fact the guy destroyed a piece of art… he had no right to try it out!”
The museum itself was less amused than the presenters. Palazzo Maffei’s director Vanessa Carlon spoke out about the damage, saying, “Sometimes we lose our brains to take a picture, and we don’t think about the consequences. Of course, it was an accident, but these two people left without speaking to us — that isn’t an accident. This is a nightmare for any museum.”
Carlon’s comments echoed what many viewers were feeling — that whether or not it was intentional, damaging artwork and running off without taking responsibility is no laughing matter.
While BBC Breakfast often brings a mix of serious news and lighter moments, this time the attempt at humor didn’t quite land with everyone. For some, it highlighted how easy it is for important cultural topics to get brushed off, even when the damage — quite literally — is staring us in the face.
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