Morrissey Slams Gordon Ramsay After Court Victory, Donates Payout to PETA for Foie Gras Protest

"Foie gras is so cruelly produced that he'd be against it if he had an ethical bone in his body," singer said about the celebrity chef

By Natalie Finn Jul 10, 2013 2:36 AMTags
Gordon Ramsay, MorriseyFrederick M. Brown/Getty Images, Mat Hayward/FilmMagic

Morrissey is really looking to shove his legal victory down Gordon Ramsay's throat.

The bellicose singer has scored a nearly $15,000 judgment in his lawsuit against Britain's Channel 4, which used "Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want" by the artist's former group The Smiths—without his permission, he said—during a commercial for the 2011 special Gordon Ramsay's Christmas Cookalong Live.

On its end, Channel 4 said in a statement: "In this instance, a small payment was made additionally to our music blanket agreements for this trailer."

And, let's just say, Morrissey isn't planning on taking himself out to a fancy dinner with that dough.

"Ramsay may very well stick his head in his microwave when he hears that the money I received from Channel 4 because one of my songs was used to promote his Christmas show is being donated to PETA to fight foie gras," the famous vegetarian said, according to The Guardian. "Foie gras is so cruelly produced that he'd be against it if he had an ethical bone in his body."

Morrissey was awarded 10,000 pounds ($14,852) and has reportedly turned it all over to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals to fund its campaign slamming famed London department store Fortnum & Mason for selling the controversial goose-liver product.

"With this generous gift, Morrissey is literally putting his money where his mouth is and combating cruelty to animals," said PETA associate director Mimi Bekhechi.

Though some is produced with natural feeding techniques, foie gras is historically made from the liver of ducks or geese that have been force-fed corn through a tube. Kate Winslet and Roger Moore have also worked with PETA in its fight against foie gras.

There has been no response from Ramsay, who does not appear to have been targeted in Morrissey's lawsuit, despite being called out in the aftermath.

California banned the sale and production of foie gras last summer and PETA recently threatened to sue two Orange County-area chefs who were still serving it as either a free side dish or as one of many ingredients found on a particular menu item.

Ramsay owns two dozen restaurants around the world, including three in the Los Angeles area, where he also shoots MasterChef and Hell's Kitchen.