His risqué jokes during the Golden Globes generated as many column inches as the award winners themselves.

But could Ricky Gervais have blown his chances of hosting the ceremony for a third year in a row?

The Reading-born funnyman said himself that he had not been asked back after the show. "That’s ominous, isn't it? So I probably won't be here next year."

However, he also put paid to reports he had been told off during the show – during a long gap when he was absent from the screen.

"I did every single introduction I was meant to. There just happened to be a long gap," Ricky told the New York Daily News in an email.

"This is because I was allowed to choose who I would introduce in advance. I obviously chose presenters who I had the best jokes for. (And who I knew had a good sense of humour).

"Everyone took it well and the atmosphere backstage and at the after show was great."

Photo: © Rex Features