A London borough council has cancelled a comedian’s performance after he was accused of making an antisemitic joke.
Harrow Council removed Reginald D Hunter from a mixed bill comedy show at Harrow Arts Centre, which it owns, on 11 October.
It comes after the comedian reportedly made a joke at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival that likened Israel to an abusive wife complaining about being abused.
It was reported that a couple in the audience, who said they were Israeli, objected to the joke and were then told by other audience members to leave, with reports that they were booed out.
Mr Hunter allegedly then went on to make a joke about the Jewish Chronicle being behind a paywall, saying it was ‘typical Jews’.
The events were first recounted in a Telegraph review, in which critic Dominic Cavendish concluded: ‘If countenancing a mob mentality and purveying an anti-Semitic trope is what passes for edgy in [Hunter’s] book, then I’ve had my fill.’
A spokesperson for charity Campaign Against Antisemitism said the reported events were ‘extremely concerning’, adding that ‘watching on and cracking jokes as Jews are hounded out of your show is a sickening low that cannot be disguised as comedy’.
Police Scotland said it was made aware of an alleged hate incident at the event but that no crime was established after a review.
Mr Hunter said on X that he regretted any ‘stress’ caused to the audience and venue staff.
He said: ‘As a comedian, I do push boundaries in creating humour, it’s part of my job. This inevitably creates divided opinions but I am staunchly anti-war and anti-bully.’
A Harrow Council spokesperson said: ‘Recent comments and events relating to Reginald D Hunter do not reflect our values of diversity, inclusion, and good community relations.
‘We were also particularly concerned of reports about the treatment of audience members at his recent show in Edinburgh.’
