John Cleese denies BDS pressure after Israeli shows postponed for second time

John Cleese has announced he will reschedule his upcoming Israel tour, citing safety concerns and the realities of travelling at 86.

The Monty Python and Fawlty Towers star had been due to appear for three nights in the country towards the end of November, after the postponement of three shows initially due to take place towards the end of June.

Last night, the promoter of Cleese’s planned Israel shows, Alon Yurik Productions, claimed the cancellations were linked to political pressure. In a statement posted on social media, the company said:

“We deeply regret that John Cleese has succumbed to threats from BDS organisations, especially after all tickets to his performances had long been sold out. We will continue to give our all to bring the Israeli audience the finest shows and cultural events.”

Cleese responded today with his own statement directly, stating that –

“Contrary to what was claimed by Alon Yurik Productions last night – and subsequently reported – I am having to reschedule my shows in Israel planned for later this month following advice about safety. At 86, that is obviously all important.”

Cleese’s new statement makes no reference to BDS or political pressure, instead emphasising his affection for Israeli audiences – and making it clear that financial considerations were not a factor for him.

“I will rearrange these shows as soon as it’s possible – and I would be happy to perform without receiving any fee,” he said.

“I am hugely fond of Israeli audiences and send my sincere apologies to all the people who bought tickets.”

In the last few weeks, the actor and comedian has shared a series of tweets relating to Israel.  These included sharing a video of Israeli soldiers closing up an illegally dug well in the West Bank, in which Cleese said of Israelis “they have a contract with God, who signed it some time ago, but which they have temporarily mislaid.”

It also included quoting a tweet showing an image of Tzipi Hotovely, the former Israeli ambassador to the UK, along with a quote falsely attributed to her, reading “There could be a million dead Palestinian children and I could still sleep well in the evening”. Cleese described the words as “unbelievable” – which indeed they were.

The comedian and actor also shared a clip of Benjamin Netanyahu talking in the 1980s. A false translation alongside the clip claimed that Netanyahu said that “Israel owns and controls the US”, when he had in fact said no such thing. Cleese’s quote tweet said: “So American institutions will advance Israeli interests over American ones?”

The Monty Python star received significant criticism online for the social media posts. Eylon Levy, former spokesperson for the State of Israel, said: “John Cleese is going on a bit of a bender, tweeting endless fake quotes from Israeli leaders from dodgy accounts. What happened to him?” Christina Hoff Sommers, an Emeritus Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, tweeted regarding his sharing of the fake Hotovely quote, that it was “Unbelievable, because the quotation is a total fabrication. What the hell happened to John Cleese?”

It is unclear when the re-postponed shows will be held in Israel.