Reginald D Hunter 'regrets' triggering antisemitism storm
But comic stops short of an apology
Reginald D Hunter has broken his silence about the antisemitism row engulfing him at the Edinburgh Fringe.
Four days after two Israeli audience members were booed out of his Edinburgh Fringe show, the comedian has now said he ‘regrets’ the incident.
At Sunday’s performance of his show in Assembly, the pair heckled the comedian after he joked about Israel. The ensuing exchange ended with the crowd allegedly yelling ‘genocidal maniac', ‘you’re not welcome’ and ‘free Palestine’ at the couple, as witnessed by Daily Telegraph critic Dominic Cavendish.
Posting on X, today Hunter stopped short of issuing an apology, but conceded: 'There was an unfortunate incident in my new show Fluffy Fluffy Beavers.
‘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. I regret any stress caused to the audience and staff members.’
— Reginald D Hunter (@reginalddhunter) August 15, 2024
However the comedian also retweeted fans who backed up his original actions against the couple, one of whom was disabled.
One said: ‘Actually the disabled audience member abused (heckled) Reg. Being a comedian he then turned the heckle into a joke Good comedians are known for dealing with hecklers this way. The fact that the audience took offence to the couple is hardly Reg’s fault is it?’
Addressing charges of antisemitism, another said: ‘What I want to know, as I’ve been on a stage, you could pick out a Jewish couple in semi darkness 50 metres away?’ And another post: ‘ Stop saying "antisemitism" to shut down criticism of the actions of Netanyahu/Israel.’
In his review, Cavendish had accused Hunter of ‘countenancing a mob mentality and purveying an anti-Semitic trope’.
It kicked off after the 55-year-old stand-up spoke about watching a TV documentary about an abusive marriage, and joking: ‘When I saw that, I thought, my God, it’s like being married to Israel.’
The couple then shouted out ‘not funny’, to which the American-born comic replied: ‘You can say it’s not funny to you, but if you say it to a room full of people who laughed, you look foolish.’
Things turned toxic after the pair revealed they were from Israel, with the woman remonstrating with the audience who were booing her. 'Look at you making everyone love Israel even more,’ Cavendish reported Hunter saying sarcastically.
And after the pair left, Hunter told the audience: ‘That tells me that I still got voltage.’
He also recalled trying to read a review of his act on he Jewish Chronicle website, saying: "Typical fucking Jews, they won’t tell you anything unless you subscribe.’
The Campaign Against Antisemitism said they were considering legal action and asked anyone who was there to get in tocuh.
A spokesperson said: 'The events described at the Edinburgh Fringe are extremely concerning. Comedians are rightly given broad latitude, but they also have a responsibility to their audience.
'Reginald D. Hunter has laughed off his Holocaust jokes and another supposed joke about ‘typical f***ing Jews’ in the past, but watching on and cracking jokes as Jews are hounded out of your show is a sickening low that cannot be disguised as comedy.
'We have seen this before in recent months, and venues must stand extremely firm against this kind of behaviour. Our lawyers are examining this incident.'
Assembly have said they were ‘aware of an audience member choosing to leave’ and said the front-of-house team ‘attended and supported’ them after they left.
In February, Soho Theatre in London banned comedian Paul Currie after a Jewish audience member complained he was ‘hounded out’ of a show. The man had said he wasn't happy with the use of a Palestinian flag when asked why he wasn't joining in a standing ovation, prompting the audience to turn on him.
Published: 15 Aug 2024
