Joe Cullen apologises after swearing in Welsh accent on dwell TV after World Championship win
Joe Cullen was left red-faced after he swore live on Sky Sports during his post-match interview following his World Championship first round win over Bradley Brooks
Joe Cullen admitted he’s got a fine coming his way after swearing live on Sky Sports following his World Championship win.
‘The Rockstar’ beat Bradley Brooks 3-0 on Sunday afternoon, putting in a brilliant display to cruise to victory in his first round game. Cullen averaged 99.33, his second highest ever on the Ally Pally stage, and threw five 180s with a checkout success of 50 per cent in one of the tournament’s best displays of the year so far.
Following his statement win, an emotionally charged Cullen couldn’t contain his excitement and pride in the victory as he celebrated in the direction of his family and friends.
Last year, Cullen refused to speak to the media after beating Wessel Nijman in the second round, claiming he had been disrespected in the build-up to the game, with the rookie Dutchman favourite to win their game.
But this time round, Cullen was more than happy to speak to Abigail Davies and Sky Sports on stage. However, his comments are set to land him in trouble, and potentially with a fine heading his way, after using an expletive while mimicking Davies’ Welsh accent.
“Cracking, love, f****** cracking,” Cullen replied in a Welsh accent as he dropped a Gavin and Stacey reference, immediately recognising his slip of the tongue, pulling an awkward face and smiling.
Davies pulled the mic away from ‘The Rockstar’ to apologise for his language, seeing Cullen also say sorry for swearing before quipping: “That’s a fine, I’m sorry, I’ll pay it now!”
Previous instances of swearing on live TV or social media have seen Michael van Gerwen and Adrian Lewis fined for using profanity, and unfortunately for Cullen, he will also likely be forced to put his hand in his pocket.
Cullen’s run for being Box Office on and off the stage at Ally Pally continued with his first comments on live TV this year.
The world No.32 has been an ever-present at the World Championships since 2011, with his furthest run to the fourth round in 2023 and 2024, where he lost to eventual champions Michael Smith and Luke Humphries.
Following his second round win last season over Nijman, Cullen stormed out of his press conference, accusing the media of showing a lack of respect.
He said: “I don’t know Wessel personally but I think the surrounding of the media led to his demise a little bit.
“I’ve struggled this year on the oche and off the oche so to find a performance like that… To be honest, I’ve got you guys to thank because I don’t think I would have played like that if I had read some of the nonsense that I read beforehand.
“The media attention that Wessel has got – again, this is not a reflection on him – he seems like a fantastic kid. The way I’ve been treated with the media and things like that…
“I know you guys have no control of the bookies, but I’ve been shown no respect so I won’t share any respect to any of you guys tonight. I’m going to go home. Cheers.”
