Irish actress Siobhán McSweeney has faced online backlash over what many called “embarrassing” and “anti-men” jokes during the 2025 Bafta TV Awards.

Taking the stage at the star-studded ceremony on May 11 at London’s Royal Festival Hall, the Derry Girls star took aim at the “Male Comedy” category, won by Danny Dyer.

“Male performance in a comedy? Really? You’re joking. Really? Male performance in a comedy,” she said, bursting into laughter.

The audience responded with awkward chuckles before McSweeney added, “No, stop it! Men are funny too.”

She went on, still laughing: “Behave, please – this is Bafta, where we apparently give out awards for male performance…”

Her remarks quickly sparked criticism online, with many viewers expressing disappointment over what they perceived as anti-male humour.

One said: “Siobhán McSweeney is incredibly funny. Here she is slating male performances in comedy. I’m quite surprised she knows what a man is. #BAFTAS.”

Another added: “I felt embarrassed, she’s not my favourite at the best of times.”

A third viewer commented: “I wonder if she wrote that herself? Or had to try and deliver somebody’s unfunny lines? Either way it was embarrassingly awful. But, hey, she got tons of promotion for her new show last night.”

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A fourth hit out at her comedic skills, adding: “Trying to do comedy and being so not funny. #bafta.”

Another alluded that this would not have happened if the roles were reversed, saying: “Imagine a man doing the same embarassingly, unfunny, cringey intro about women that Siobhan McSweney did about men. Funny old life init!? I used to quite like her on the pottery thing.”

Presenter Alan Cumming also faced backlash, with his performance as Bafta host rubbing some the wrong way.

Dressed in a shiny blue suit paired with a leopard-print shirt, the presenter kicked off the ceremony with cheeky innuendos, notably saying: “I’m popping my Bafta cherry with you all tonight. So, be gentle, Britain.”

He went on to read from a children’s storybook, humorously highlighting frequent missteps actors make during acceptance speeches, such as overcrowding the stage and dragging out their thank-yous.

However, a few jokes fell flat. One roped in Daniel Mays for an underwhelming gag, while another compared a cast member of Rivals’ anatomy to that of a horse.

While much of Cumming’s opening monologue was met with chuckles from the audience inside the venue, reactions online told a different story, with many viewers quick to voice their disapproval.

“Alan Cumming was as bad as I thought he’d be,” one viewer slammed on X before another added: “Alan Cumming making it increasingly difficult to carry on watching this.”

A third questioned the choice of host entirely, asking: “Of all the brilliantly funny hosts in a very large talent pool, you choose Alan Cumming? Why?”

A fourth viewer simply stated: “This host is ridiculously bad.”

This year’s ceremony saw several big names take home awards, including Marisa Abela for Industry, Lennie James for Mr Loverman, Danny Dyer for Mr Big Stuff, and Ruth Jones for Gavin & Stacey.