Comedian Vittorio Angelone apologises after outrage over rape joke

Warning: This article contains discussion of rape which some readers may find distressing.

Vittorio Angelone has made a public apology following backlash to a rape joke he told about a woman who has said she was the victim of sexual assault.

Angelone is a Belfast comedian who appeared on a 'roast' episode of the Have A Word podcast recorded in autumn last year, and directed his rape joke towards fellow comedian Freddy Quinne.

In a paywalled episode of the podcast the comedian had asked Quinne: "If you're here, who's raping Rebecca Goodwin?"

Goodwin, who had reported a rape to the police in July 2025, responded to Angelone's joke about her by saying: "I understand comedy and things can be laughed at, but this is one of the hardest things I've ever been through in my life and I'm not exaggerating and it just hurts.

"It's not funny and he's not funny.”

Saying that it would 'forever live with me that it was allowed for my name to be used as the punchline of a malicious 'joke' about such a serious issue', she claimed that Angelone had posted clips on social media containing the joke in recent days.

Goodwin said she was glad that she hadn't seen the clip when it was first released, and that Angelone had not made any contact or attempt to apologise during that time.

Angelone has now posted an apology on his social media channels.

He wrote: "I made a joke that I shouldn't have made and I'd like to say sorry.

"The joke referenced sexual violence. At the very least I should have run the joke past the person mentioned and then still not told it because it isn't funny.

"I let my need for validation supersede my own standards and morals. It's completely pathetic and I'm ashamed to realise that about myself.

"I pride myself on being able to talk about difficult topics and make them funny. I stand behind plenty of jokes that people have criticised. This is not one of those jokes.

"I've reached out and apologised directly to the person mentioned in the joke.

"I'm also sorry to all the people who are rightly upset by the joke. I know that's not going to make it okay but I'm still sorry.

"I am not apologising in the hopes that this all blows over. I'm apologising because that's what you should do when you realise you've done something wrong.

"I'm grateful to you for calling me out and making me realise where I should've done better."

He went on to say that 'sometimes you need a lot of people telling you' when you've made a huge error and resolved to 'do better in future'.

The BBC reports that the joke is still in the paywalled episode of the podcast.

Goodwin said that Quinne and other comedians who participated in the podcast have since apologised to her as well, but she said she didn't accept their apologies as they had come a year after Angelone had make the joke, adding that 'nobody had my back in that room at the time, up until I made a social media post about it'.

She said: "We are facing a global crisis of violence against women and girls, and we are begging for our safety and experiences to be taken seriously."

If you have been affected by any of the issues in this article and wish to speak to someone in confidence, contact the Rape Crisis England and Wales helpline on 0808 500 222, available 24/7. If you are currently in danger or need urgent medical attention, you should call 999.