It has finally happened: almost three weeks after I first exposed John Cleese’s antisemitic diatribes on X and asked “Why is he still planning to perform in Israel?” – his shows have been cancelled.
Except the Ministry of Silly Excuses Israeli production company behind the scheduled performances is claiming BDS-holes were behind the cancellation.
British comedian and actor John Cleese has canceled his scheduled performances in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, under pressure from anti-Israeli activists, though the “Monty Python” star has also recently used social media to turn on Israel.
The Israeli production company behind the planned performances said that the the cancellation was due to threats from the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement against Israel.
“We regret that John Cleese gave in to threats from the BDS organizations and that is after all the tickets for his shows were sold out long ago,” the company said in a statement.
For the last several days, the comedian has been reposting anti-Israel comments and media on his X account, including false claims, and videos of actor Mandy Patinkin raging against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and actor Mark Ruffalo railing against his Jewish friends. Cleese was previously not known to have a stance particularly critical of Israel, and performed there a few years ago.
No, Times of Israel. He has been posting more than merely “anti-Israel comments and media” for more than “the last several days.” He has been posting outright antisemitism for weeks.
Since I first posted about him and spoke about it on JNS TV, I have continued to badger him.
Hey @JohnCleese, please make us understand why you still plan on performing in a country you find so evil. Is our money good enough for you, just not our efforts to defend ourselves from terrorism? pic.twitter.com/7ZcdMxhswU
— David Lange (@Israellycool) November 6, 2025
That's a fake quote, @JohnCleese. Unfortunately, you have become a real-life joke.
— David Lange (@Israellycool) November 10, 2025
The fact you haven't cancelled your shows in Israel yet is the real punchline. https://t.co/b3hQliYq4Z
And more pro-Israel people have been asking him the same question on X.
At least one, my friend and journalist Lahav Harkov, even received a refund:
Cleese’s online activity has ruffled some feathers among fans in Israel, who are paying between NIS 300 and NIS 500 per ticket. One fan who had bought tickets to one of the Tel Aviv shows, Lahav Harkov, senior political correspondent with Jewish Insider, reconsidered her purchase after reading Cleese’s tweets, and requested and received a full refund.
“I bought those tickets a long time ago, and I don’t want my money to go to him anymore,” she said.
So I call BS on the BDS angle. I believe the pressure from Jews like me – shaming him publicly for his hypocrisy – were the main catalyst for the cancellation.
And while I am disappointed one of my favorite comedians has turned out to be such a flog, I suspect missing out on his shows is no big loss.
Back in 2019, I had bought tickets to attend his shows in Israel. But my late wife passed away right before the shows, and I gave up my tickets. Friends who attended one of his shows told me how disappointing his was, describing how it was mostly just him playing YouTube videos of himself.
I missed Cleese’s show in 2019 for the saddest of reasons. Now Israel will miss him for the most pathetic of ones.
Turns out life really is a tragicomedy.
Updates
11/11/25 15:15: Cleese denies it was BDS pressure, claiming it was due to safety concerns.
But he also claims he is fond of Israeli audiences!
