'We live in Australia': Brian Taylor slammed over 'disgusting' comments
Brian Taylor has landed himself in hot water over his refusal to accept the correct pronunciation of Orazio Fantasia’s name.
The Channel 7 and Triple M commentator’s pronunciation of the Essendon star’s name has become iconic among AFL fans, but it turns out he’s been saying it wrong for years.
While Taylor loves to bellow “Fan-tay-sha” whenever he gets the ball, it should actually be pronounced “Fanta-sia”.
Fantasia told Triple M radio how to say it properly last year, and Essendon skipper Dyson Heppell re-iterated that on Friday night on Channel 7.
With Taylor not commentating Essendon’s clash with the Swans, Channel 7’s Hamish McLachlan decided to ask Heppell about it.
“So BT’s not here tonight, he’s having a sleep in. Orazio is back in. ‘Fan-tay-sha’ or ‘Fanta-sia?’,” McLaughlin asked Heppell.
“‘Fanta-sia’,” Heppell said. “‘Fanta-sia’ it is. I think everyone’s been running ‘Fan-tay-sha’, but it is ‘Fanta-sia’.”
Hame walks around the SCG with @essendonfc's fearless leader, @DysonHeppell!#AFLSwansDons pic.twitter.com/KQI7Sl6Zp5
— 7AFL (@7AFL) May 10, 2019
Heppell said he’d like everyone use the correct pronunciation, and the Channel 7 team of McLachlan, Bruce McAvaney, Basil Zempilas, Wayne Carey and Jimmy Bartel all ran with ‘Fanta-sia’ during the match.
Not having it
But on Saturday, Taylor refused to accept the request.
On Triple M radio, Taylor explained why he’ll continue to say ‘Fan-tay-sha’.
“In Italy, it’s ‘Fanta-sia’. Guess where we live? Australia, and we call it ‘Fan-tay-sha’,” Taylor said.
“We don’t pronounce Italian names in Australia in the full Italian way.
“We pronounce it with the Australianism in it, and that’s how we’ll continue to do it.”
While Taylor’s response may have been in jest, it’s since sparked uproar.
Sydney Morning Herald journalist Vince Rugari labelled Taylor’s comments ‘disgusting’, and he wasn’t the only one upset.
This is pretty disgusting. https://t.co/nCxElY3urf
— Vince Rugari (@VinceRugari) May 11, 2019
If Fantasia wants his surname to be pronounced correctly from now on, all power to him. It’s up to him – not Anglo-Saxon boys club legends who want to make the rules themselves. For a game that wants to be ‘multicultural’ it’s a pretty bad look.
— Vince Rugari (@VinceRugari) May 11, 2019
Surely the definitive pronunciation of any player’s name is entirely up to what that player wants.
— Mark Gottlieb (@MarkGottliebFOX) May 11, 2019
So BT is going to knowingly call Fantasia’s name incorrectly. How did we reach a point where this is remotely acceptable? https://t.co/n0LzqMF9TQ
— Daniel Cherny 📰 (@DanielCherny) May 11, 2019
Fantasia has made a special point to request correct pronunciation from now on. But no, BT knows better.
— Daniel Cherny 📰 (@DanielCherny) May 11, 2019
I’ve dealt with this my whole life as well. Brian Taylor is an absolute dropkick. Always has been. I wish he was actually known outside 3 states in Australia so other people could pronounce his name wrong, too. What a hack. https://t.co/V7rdwDUqyL
— Nick Metallinos (@NickMetallinos) May 11, 2019
On Saturday night, a spokesperson for the Essendon Football Club confirmed the “Fanta-sia” pronunciation was correct, but said “Orazio is comfortable if people continue to run with ‘Fan-tay-sha’ pronunciation”.