British comedian John Cleese responded Tuesday to the postponement of his Israel performances, scheduled for later this month in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.
On his X account, Cleese wrote, "Contrary to the claims made by Alon Yurik Productions last night – which were subsequently reported – I'm having to reschedule my shows in Israel planned for later this month, following advice about safety. At 86, that is obviously all important.
Some facts that need clarifying... pic.twitter.com/wxgxQQEzwm
— John Cleese (@JohnCleese) November 11, 2025
"I will rearrange these shows as soon as it's possible – and will be happy to perform without receiving any fee," he promised. "I am hugely fond of Israeli audiences and send my sincere apologies to all the people who bought tickets."
On Monday evening, it was announced that Cleese's shows, planned for the end of the month in Israel, were canceled. Alon Yurik Productions stated that Cleese gave in to threats from BDS organizations, after all tickets to his performances had sold out long ago.
Cleese @JohnCleese must now be counted as a Hamas supporter. https://t.co/VCc2Cp1yvp
— Metaburbia (@metaburbia) November 9, 2025
In recent years, and increasingly since October 7, Cleese appears to frequently share tweets on X with an anti-Israel character, which caused certain groups to call for a boycott of him.
The World Beitar Movement also joined the call, tweeting that Cleese was not welcome in Israel – calling him "a legendary comedian who became a bitter old man spreading hate, echoing Hamas propaganda, sharing tweets from extremists and vilifying the Jewish state, who comes to Israel only to put money in his pockets."
