10 memorable mistakes caught on tape

Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling, right. Photo / AP

The owner of the Los Angeles Clippers basketball team, Donald Sterling, is in hot water after allegedly urging a woman to not bring black people to his team's games - and having it caught on tape. It's certainly not the first time a celebrity has been caught off-guard.

Today we look at ten of the more memorable celebrity moments caught on tape - whether they were intentional or not.

1. "A bunch of lardos" - Rachel Smalley

New Zealand's most recent blunder comes from Newstalk ZB presenter Rachel Smalley who left her microphone on during an advertisement break earlier this month. On air she had been discussing a NZ Herald article about how the morning-after pill was ineffective for women weighing over 70 kilograms, with the average weight of New Zealand women at 72 kilograms. During the ad break, believing her microphone to be off, she commented in disbelief at the average weight of the New Zealand woman - saying they were "heifers" and "a bunch of lardos". Dismayed at her words, Smalley made a tearful apology the following day.

2. "You're trying to breastfeed... with foreign bodies in you" - Mel Gibson

It seems that some people don't learn from their mistakes. Oscar-winner Mel Gibson has been haunted by various recordings of his abusive, racist rants since 2006 when he launched an anti-Semitic attack at a US sheriff's deputy who had arrested him for drunk driving. In the attack, Gibson is reported to have said that Jews were responsible for all the wars in the world.

Since then, he's been recorded abusing his ex-girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva (claiming that she was asking to be raped and insulting her breast implants) and also a rant at screenwriter Joe Eszterhas.

Gibson's reactions to the publicity surrounding his rants have been mixed - he has apologised for his behaviour in 2006 and blamed alcohol. However, he said that Grigorieva had edited the tapes.

3. "I wish those riot squad guys would..." - Dave Dobbyn

Photo / Greg Bowker

On December 7, 1984, a free concert was held in Aotea Square to celebrate school finishing and the launch of a "new kind of radio station", Triple M89FM. A 10,000-strong audience poured into the square to watch the concert featuring D.D.Smash, The Mockers and Herbs.

Dressed in riot gear, the police arrived, blocking exits and ordering the concert closed. Dave Dobbyn allegedly said to the crowd, "I wish those riot squad guys would stop w*nking and put their little batons away." The disturbance turned into a riot, with bottles thrown, shop windows broken and cars turned over.

Dobbyn was charged with inciting the riot, but was eventually cleared of all charges.

4. "This is...a....mess" - David Hasselhoff

Photo / AP

He became famous for his talking car and later for running down beaches in red swimsuits, but David Hasselhoff hit headlines for his drinking in 2007. His daughter took to filming him in one of his drunken binges believing it would be the only way to get him to change his ways.

Hasselhoff was seen stuffing his face with a hamburger while lying on the floor. He could barely speak as his daughter admonished his alcohol use. The video was leaked online and Hasselhoff later said that he was grateful to his daughter and it helped him rededicate his life and to remain sober.

5. "Do you want to die...?" - Jerry Collins

Photo / Tim Hales

Former All Black Jerry Collins was allegedly captured on tape threatening workers at a Noodle Canteen in Wellington in July last year. After ordering his meal, he became agitated and abusive when he believed that it was taking too long to prepare.

"Do you want to die mother*****? I'm going to knock your ass out mother*****. Be very careful," he shouted at the staff.

A diner in the Noodle Canteen captured the tirade on his phone, and Collins was soon arrested by police and held at the station for detoxification.

6. "I deserve to get hurt..." - OJ Simpson

In June 1994, OJ Simpson lay in the passenger seat of his white Ford Bronco with a gun pointed at his head while his friend drove up to 20 police cars in a slow chase down a Californian highway.

Throughout the chase Simpson chatted with Detective Tom Lange. Lange tried to get Simpson to throw the gun away, while Simpson lamented about his life, saying he had said goodbye to his children and "I'm the only one that deserves it... I'm going to get hurt... all I did was love her," referring to Nicole Brown.

It was the day that Simpson was expected to hand himself in for the murders of Nicole Brown and Ronald Goldman. He was later charged and found not guilty for their murders.

7. " No, not at all no chance" - John Key

Photo / Mark Mitchell

In 2011, Prime Minister John Key sat down with ACT's John Banks to have what he thought was a private conversation. The pair met at an Auckland cafe as Key's symbolic endorsement of Banks as National's favoured candidate for Epsom. Cameraman Bradley Ambrose recorded the conversation between the pair, which included Key responding to Banks' question as to whether NZ First's Winston Peters would be re-elected. "No, not at all no chance," said Key.

The tape was passed to the Herald on Sunday who declined to publish it, but it was published on YouTube the following year.

Key later apologised saying that "I would always phrase things in a better way if it was a public conversation" and "So if there was offence, yes, I apologise for that."

8. "You're about to find out who I am!" - Reese Witherspoon

Photo / AP

When Reese Witherspoon's husband was pulled over for suspected drinking and driving, she decided to interrupt and let the officer know exactly who he was dealing with. She asked him if he knew her name and shouted, "You're about to find out who I am". Her rant continued, challenging the officer. "I have to obey your orders?" she asked.

Her husband told the officer, "I'm sorry, I had nothing to do with that!"

Reese plead no contest to Physical Obstruction of Another and her husband Jim plead guilty to Driving Under the Influence.

9. Live stream of a stream of urine - Patrick Gower

In another moment where a journalist forgot to turn off their microphone, TV3 Political Editor Patrick Gower needed a bathroom break after a half hour live stream speech from Prime Minister John Key earlier this year. In the online broadcast, Gower could be heard taking a leak. In good humour, Gower dubbed the incident "leakgate", saying "I was caught short, I admit that but I will say this: It could have been a hell of a lot worse." Indeed.

10. "I'm in love" - Tom Cruise

Photo / AP

Tom Cruise went from being loved to being loopy in a single television interview with by Oprah Winfrey in 2005. It's not so much the words that make him number ten on this list, but the way he jumped up and down on the couch, grabbing at Winfrey's arms and acting like a crazy-giddy teenager. Blaming his madness on love, it was a cringe-worthy interview that showed an entirely different side to the heartthrob.

- nzherald.co.nz