‘Last Week Tonight’: John Oliver Reveals The 2009 Shaq Tweet That “Will Be The Last Thing I Think About Before I Die”

Glenn Garner

24 June 2024 at 0:29 am·2-min read

As the UK general election heats up, John Oliver is taking a look at his country’s options… and a social media moment that lives in his head rent-free.

On Sunday’s episode of Last Week Tonight, the comedian took aim at all political parties, including Labour Party Leader Keir Starmer for not having a clear political stance and “having no real notable attribute at all.

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“You know how hard it is to have less than half the population know what you stand for in the modern age?” he asked. “Thanks to social media, I know what my high school chemistry teacher thinks about vegans who eat honey. I know my brother’s roommate’s ex-girlfriend thinks Lee Harvey Oswald couldn’t have acted alone.

“And I know that Shaq doesn’t fit in the seats at Knott’s Berry Farm, because he tweeted, and I quote, ‘I’m at Knott’s Berry Farm and my butt’s too big to fit in the seats on the ride. Ahhh! That’s me yelling.’ That was 15 years ago, and it will be the last thing I think about before I die,” said Oliver.

Before diving into the UK election, Oliver slammed US Republicans for “loudly pretending to care about the well-being of children” with a recent Louisiana law requiring the Ten Commandments be displayed in classrooms, as well as Florida, Tennessee and Utah’s recent failed attempts to ban Pride flags in schools.

im at knots berry farms n my butts 2 big 2 fit in da seats on ride. ahhhhhh (dats me yellin)
— SHAQ (@SHAQ) August 20, 2009

He then slammed a Denver parent’s lawsuit attempting to require their child’s school district to display a “Straight Pride Flag,” which they described as “a black and white striped flag with a linked male and female gender sign on it.”

Oliver displayed what that would look like, “which to be honest, really screams heterosexuality,” comparing it to “the Hamburglar’s wedding invitation.”

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