Youp van ’t Hek delivers a scathing critique of Gordon: “With his cokehead!”

Dutch comedian Youp van ’t Hek is known for his sharp pen, and in his latest NRC column, he unleashes a fierce attack on TV personality Gordon. The trigger for Youp’s criticism is Gordon’s recent announcement that he wants to restore Whitney Houston’s grave, having visited her “desolate” burial site and expressing his shock at the state of the plot on Instagram.

Youp doesn’t mince words, calling Gordon’s grave visit pure theater, done for show rather than sincerity—pointing out there was, of course, a camera present: “This kind of person never does anything for nothing. With his cokehead!” writes Youp bluntly. He sees Gordon’s gesture as nothing but self-glorification and a hunger for attention. According to the comedian, Gordon is “addicted to himself” and describes the act of bringing a “meager bouquet of flowers snatched from a gas station” as outright disrespectful.

Youp continues his criticism, suggesting that Gordon’s restless antics are just a symptom of boredom and a desperate need for the spotlight. He claims Gordon only looks for ways to stand in the limelight, even if it means disturbing the peace of a legendary singer who has passed away. Referring to Gordon’s thought process, Youp says: “He probably came up with that after a couple of nice lines.” (A clear dig at Gordon’s well-known history with cocaine.)

The tone gets even grimmer as Youp calls Gordon a “coked-up Amsterdam idiot” who “shamelessly violates the grave of one of the greatest world stars of the previous century.” He decries Gordon’s actions as showing deep contempt for both the deceased and her loved ones.

Youp further mocks Gordon’s lifestyle in Blaricum (a wealthy Dutch town), cynically referencing his coffee shop clientele and the “botox babes” he finds there. According to Youp, Gordon doesn’t know what to do with himself anymore and thus resorts to public stunts for relevance. “Of course, I realize none of it will actually happen. It’s just the ranting and raving of a brain scrambled by coke,” he writes. But then Youp delivers the punchline: “Doesn’t it go too far when he dances on the grave of the great Whitney Houston?”

As the finishing blow, Youp states that Gordon never had any real connection to Whitney Houston, comparing him to a “market vendor” who tries to profit from someone else’s fame. In Youp’s view, Gordon has no place at her grave and should “let the dead rest in peace.”

With his trademark sarcasm and wit, Youp van ’t Hek leaves readers in no doubt: he considers Gordon’s actions not only inappropriate, but deeply disrespectful—a sign of the exhausting cycle of celebrity self-promotion and society’s endless appetite for such drama.