Patrick Doyle, veteran actor has come to the defense of his colleague Jim Iyke following the uproar generated by Iyke’s unconventional birthday tribute to fellow Nollywood star, Kate Henshaw.
Jim Iyke had raised eyebrows on social media after he posted a bold, humorous, and deeply personal message on Instagram on Sunday — a day after Kate turned 54. The post, laced with nostalgia and adult innuendo, sparked mixed reactions among fans and fellow celebrities.
In the lengthy note, Jim began every paragraph with the phrase “F**k you, Kate,” a shocking stylistic choice that he used to recount moments from their decades-long friendship and his former romantic interest in her.
“F**k you, on behalf of my 23-year-old self for treating me like your baby brother when you knew all that time I wanted to hit that,” Jim wrote, blending candor with cheeky humor. He reminisced about the early days of their relationship when Kate helped him financially and emotionally during his struggles as a young actor.
“You kept manipulating my black ass by always looking out for me… slipping a couple of bucks in my hands to make sure I got a meal or transport fare back to my cousin’s,” he added.
In another part of the message, Iyke delved into a hypothetical past where they could have become more than just friends. “Our love child would have been in his/her mid twenties now if you had let me experiment with my seed just a couple of times. What a gorgeous human we would have made together!” he wrote, sparking debate about whether the post was heartfelt or inappropriate.
Jim also revealed that the two eventually became intimate at some point, though he admitted that his own immaturity and behavior caused the relationship to fall apart. “You knew I had a great heart, but I was just crazy and dumb… You stopped looking out for me. Took everything I did literally, then ran off and married that ‘Oyibo,’” he said. Despite everything, he expressed pride in how things turned out, ending the message on a somewhat reflective note: “It did end in praise. I was so proud!”
While some interpreted Jim’s tribute as an honest, if unfiltered, expression of affection and respect for a longtime friend, others felt it crossed the line of decency and respect.
Actor Patrick Doyle, however, stepped into the conversation on Friday to lend his voice in support of Iyke. Taking to Instagram, the seasoned actor praised the tribute as both humorous and affectionate.
“I think Jim paid my darling sister a very witty and affectionate compliment with his message,” Doyle said. “The Kate I know has an excellent sense of humour and will accept the compliment for what it truly is, an affectionate expression of admiration.”
However, not everyone saw it that way. Fellow Nollywood actor and Tinsel star, Gideon Okeke, slammed Jim Iyke in a sharply worded Instagram comment posted on Monday.
“Somebody take a look at this Motherf**ka over here,” Okeke wrote. “It’s the narcissistic effrontery for me. Such a bonehead. I wonder who puts these people in check. It’s this kinda rubbish behaviour that people condone, that gives other people the balls to be the actual pricks they are… in real life. Small boy. Talk anyhow in public. Tueh.”
The incident has sparked a broader discussion online about boundaries, public expressions of affection, and the fine line between boldness and disrespect in celebrity culture.
As reactions continue to pour in, fans remain divided — with some praising Jim Iyke for being candid and vulnerable, while others insist that such a message, especially on a public platform, was simply out of line.
