Four years ago yesterday, a meme was born: professor Robert Kelly, who will be forever known as “BBC Dad,” had the gall to get interrupted by his kids during a live video interview broadcast around the world.
Four years later, we are all BBC Dad
Remote work is accepted now
Remote work is accepted now
is a senior editor and founding member of The Verge who covers gadgets, games, and toys. He spent 15 years editing the likes of CNET, Gizmodo, and Engadget.
I remember thinking: isn’t this just a cute video? Why would anyone drag him for working at home? But of course I’d see things that way, seeing how I’ve spent most of the past decade working from a home office myself.
Initially, BBC Dad had to own it. He had to lean into the meme, making his kids part of his public persona and even featuring them in later interviews. Even today, he’s still trying to explain that yes, he WAS wearing pants at the time.
The kids-interrupting-the-call part, though? Not so much. Everyone understands that now. You or someone in your family or circle of friends has been BBC Dad, making some hilarious gaff in a work call, counting yourselves lucky your upside-down floating head or deep-seated-desire to become a cat didn’t get shared with the entire world.
We’ve lost an awful lot in the COVID-19 pandemic, but one incredibly tiny silver lining is that remote work is better understood now. I don’t need to explain to anyone that my desk is my office, or that kids will magically phase in and out of my video calls.
Okay, that felt a little somber. Let’s end on a brighter note! Here are more children interrupting live video interviews.
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