John Cleese pulls out of Cambridge Union event (new video) over ‘woke rules’
 

I never understand people's issues with being woke.... At least these people aren't asleep.

Fair enough - lunatics who "cancel" speakers for things done decades ago (in comedy) don't deserve to host anyone.

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/976/cp...i020113896.jpg


[John Cleese has cancelled an appearance
at Cambridge University after a visiting speaker
was banned for a Hitler impression.

The star, who said he had done a similar impression
on a Monty Python show,
said he was "blacklisting myself
before someone else does".

It came after The Cambridge Union said
art historian Andrew Graham-Dixon would
not be invited back.

Union president Keir Bradwell said Cleese's
withdrawal was a "huge shame".

On Twitter Cleese apologised to union members
and said: "I was looking forward to talking
to students at the Cambridge Union this Friday,
but I hear that someone there has been
blacklisted for doing an impersonation of Hitler.

"I regret that I did the same on a Monty Python show,
so I am blacklisting myself before someone else does.

"I apologise to anyone at Cambridge who
was hoping to talk with me, but perhaps some
of you can find a venue where woke rules do not apply."]



But he did Hitler jokes over 50 years ago.
Could the Student
Union not assure him?

Wokes, they wanna spoil fun un
Oh o, wokes just wanna spoil fun
That's all they really waaaaaant!


I reckon I could have a number one hit with that

If the Student Union of Cambridge
could not assure John
that his Hitler jokes from 50 years ago
are not a problem.

Then he had no choice
but to pull out of the booked event.

John Cleese is getting too old either, no offense but elderly also want to enjoy a calm retirement (not meant in a ageist way at all, am a big fan of Cleese, love him also as Q/R in Bond) and we got him as the voice of our TomTom



jokes like that were allowed back then, i can understand the controversy behind those jokes, it is just not something to make fun of, to go acting like Hitler in a family entertainment comedy series, when Hitler caused the deaths of many millions, many in also very gruesome ways in the gas chambers



that's not woke to think like that, just common sense




and yes i enjoy watching most of Fawlty Towers episodes, on our nostalgic channel of our cable provider ziggo

He is
but it is great to meet Students in a University Event
streamed online.
John can help the confused young students.

some years back he was also in my nation

speaking to some of our students here for the NPO2 (one of our national channels) tv show College Tour

Who would want to speak to that horrible bunch of reactionary lefties?

Judging by the article it said the guy ‘wouldn’t be invited back’ that to me, sounds like he went there and did the impression while he was doing whatever he was doing, which if that’s the case, the Union were right to ban him from future appearances.

Seems like John loves playing the victim these days, I’m not quite sure why people wouldn’t want him to do things like this anyway, he comes across as a horrible person anyway.

Unsurprising post. Agree with those suppressing free speech an rubbish the comedy icon.

The guy still has free speech, he’s just not allowed to use it in that specific setting anymore, if he wants to go around and do Hitler Impressions elsewhere then he can, freedom of speech isn’t freedom of consequences, he was invited somewhere, they didn’t like what he did, he won’t be invited back, that’s normal no?

I’ll refrain on the ‘rubbish the comedy icon’ thing because, it’s clearly a matter of opinion.

Great Video Nicky
2015 no Covid them.

No he should have spoken direct to the Student Union Boss
and told them of the clips from over 50 years ago
and they were Comedy.

Get an agreement with the Student Union.

He was invited, they already planned to have him there, he’s taken an incident that’s completely different to what he did and twisted it to play the victim and further push a false narrative that he’s been ‘cancelled’ when he’s the one who pulled out of the appearance, it’s people like him that are stoking this ‘culture war’

i loved fawlty towers and all things python, but Cleese isn't a naturally funny man. He has suffered from mental illness throughout his career and he pretty much sold out when he moved to america decades ago and lost the ability to even write a funny script. So while I want free speech protected, i don't see Cleese as an icon for it

This in the main for me.
It says much I would have.

I don't care for Cleese anyway.

However linking Hitler with comedy, would always be to me an insulting scenario.

I think they were right to not have the other guy too.

Cleese freely decided not to go to the place.
Fair enough that's his choice.
Although he couldn't really condemn the other guy having used the same kind of scenario,( I won't term it humour), himself.

Me neither... but where are we going to draw the line? So many creative, funny people are hounded by mental illness.

i think we need a little perspective, people have literally thousands of outlets now to get their views heard globally. It's impossible to shut anyone up unless you imprison them.

But if you're part of a privileged group and you find someone who did a Hitler impression half a century ago... you can have a good go.

Yes maybe someone let him know
it would be interrupted
so he was wise to pull out.


Give the Old Fella
some credit Liam.


He has had some great Comedy.

He is a bit gammony but he's 82, realistically he's not going to be swanning around with 21st century ideologies, in the real world you do have to adjust your expectations for age and culture.

I know there are plenty who would roll out the "Age isn't an excuuuussseee reeeeee" mantras but those people are full of **** and do not in fact live in the same postcode area as the real world so I've made an executive decision to ignore them completely unless they can offer me a compelling argument to go along with their dogma.

New he talks about Cambridge
and Creative Comedy.


Very Recent.
Talking Sense about how Woke people stink.

I personally am not into the Hitler jokes tbh, but I don't think people should be banned from places for making those jokes.

Imo it's a slippery slope when we start censoring jokes because we don't like them.