Gervais says he won't hold back at Golden Globes

NEW YORK, Jan. 6 (UPI) -- British comedian Ricky Gervais says he will not hold back when it comes to skewering celebrities as host of this month's 69th annual Golden Globes show.

"I do it my way. I get final edit on everything. And everything I do turns out like I wanted. … And they don't know what I'm gonna say. And they won't know what I'm gonna say till I say it," Gervais told Matt Lauer on Friday's edition of NBC's "Today" show.

The creator-star of "The Office" and "Extras" said the producers of the Globes didn't place any restrictions on him and he wouldn't have agreed to serve as host for a third time if they had.

Gervais also said the Globes is a tough gig for a comedian since attendees are distracted by who is winning the awards, as well as eating their dinners.

"The attention span of someone at an awards show, particularly the Golden Globes, is about a second," he said. "They're drinkin', they're talkin', they're seein' someone. You know, you've gotta grab their attention. It's not a great place for a comedian to play because they've got other things on their mind. They're there to see if they've won an award, but they don't wanna see this guy come out and telling jokes. Certainly not jokes at their expense."

Gervais' second stint as master of ceremonies of the awards show last January was blasted by some critics who felt his jokes about celebrities and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which bestows the Globes, were too harsh. However, Gervais did not apologize for his behavior, stating it was all in the spirit of fun.

This year's Golden Globes awards ceremony honoring the best in film and television for 2011 is to be held Jan. 15 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.