A professor from home gave an interview to the BBC, and his two children turned the video into a hit
On March 10, the BBC presenter called Busan National University professor Robert Kelly via video link to comment on the impeachment of the President of South Korea. And this video would have become one of hundreds of other unremarkable videos — but the professor was giving an interview from home and did not close the door to the room, so his young children, and then his wife, burst into the huge BBC audience one by one. In two days, the video with the family has gained almost half a million views.
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The same video
Live TV gone wrong
THIS. IS. AMAZING.
At first, everything goes according to plan: a political science professor in a suit and tie against the background of a world map and books spread out on the bed, seriously broadcasts about the situation in South Korea.
But then one of his children comes in.
And then the second one.
The embarrassed professor struggles to contain his laughter and apologizes several times to the interlocutor. Then Kelly's wife flies into the room like a bullet and takes both babies. Everyone pretends that nothing happened.
What happened next
On the same day, the BBC presenter on Twitter asked Kelly for permission to post a video with his participation on the Internet. The professor replied: "In the sense of posting it again on BBC TV or just on Twitter? Is this the kind of thing that will go viral and turn into something crazy?" And he was right: on the BBC's Facebook alone, the video scored an incredible 80 million views in three days.
Since the main character of the video did not comment on him, Daily Mail journalists contacted his 72-year-old mother. Ellen Kelly admitted that perhaps this funny incident on the BBC happened because of her. She explained that she and her husband Joseph live in Ohio and regularly Skype with their son and grandchildren: "The children must have heard a voice in the room and decided that it was us. It was hilarious. My favorite moment is when Jung—ah slips into the room in an attempt to save the interview."
The woman said that her 44-year—old son is an expert on South Korea, who was interviewed by CNN, CNBC, ITN and Sky News. She hopes that the professor will receive recognition for his knowledge, and not for this incident. Nevertheless, at the time of communication with the Daily Mail, she was glad of her son's unexpected fame: "It was fantastic. Robert will have a real treat when he wakes up." At the end of the conversation, Kelly laughed: "Well, anything happens. There will be a lesson for him — to close the door to the room!"
Robert Kelly moved to South Korea in 2008 to teach political science at Busan National University. Prior to that, he received a PhD from Ohio State University — and there he met a Korean student who interested him in the politics of his country. Shortly after moving in, Kelly met his future wife Jung-ah Kim, she teaches yoga.
Robert and Jung-a have two children — four-year-old Marion and nine-month-old James.
The funny video became a meme: screenshots with a confused man in a suit began to illustrate various recognizable situations. Captions like "When you try to work from home" and "Not now, baby, your daddy is a professor" were added to it.
Keywords: BBC | Skype | Viral video | South Korea