Viral videos of the week: Ice bucket f-bombs, TV glitches and coming out

31 Aug 2014

We take a look at some of the most-viewed and most-shared videos on the web. This week features TV and ice bucket challenges gone wrong, and a family taking the wrong approach to their son’s coming out of the closet.

Losing one’s head over the Ice Bucket Challenge

There probably isn’t anyone in the world with an internet connection who isn’t aware of the ALS/MND Ice Bucket Challenge. While millions of gallons of water have gone into meeting this great cause, sides have been splitting around the world at some of the challenges gone wrong. In the case of one Irish Montessori school teacher, it was a painful lesson.

Dropping the F-bomb on the Ice Bucket Challenge

And while people were getting injured, embarrassed and much worse, our hearts were touched by the example of this little two year-old who could not resist taking the challenge but also voicing an expletive of her own. Whatever you think about bad language, we think it was cute anyway.

Homer Simpson does the Ice Bucket Challenge

Across the world celebrities, CEOs and other notables also took part in the Ice Bucket Challenge but none can beat the hammering poor Homer Simpson received when he took the challenge.

Jesus mammy!

Irish mammies are notorious for being out of step with what’s cool (or freezing) and our minds were turned to the plight of one young buck who enlisted the aid of his mother when he took the Ice Bucket Challenge.

The National Lotte … Oh!

Freezing of a different nature took place on RTÉ this week, when presenter Brian Ormond had to stop mid-spiel because of some kind of cock-up to do with the Lotto draw being inadvertently activated too soon. Live television certainly presents its share of challenges.

How not to react when your child tells you that he’s gay

Here we switch from the funny and downright embarrassing to a much more serious, poignant and emotional subject matter. This video provides a heartbreaking glimpse of a son’s decision to tell his parents he is gay and shows that not all parents are accepting of their childrens’ sexual orientation. Warning: there are scenes of violence in this video.

John Kennedy is a journalist who served as editor of Silicon Republic for 17 years

editorial@siliconrepublic.com