Comedian Paul Currie has claimed that he is “not allowed” to play at Glastonbury 2024, following a row with one of his audience members over Palestine.
The incident between the comic and the member of his audience took place in February, when Currie was accused of “hounding” a Jewish man out of a London gig because he reportedly “refused to applaud” a Palestinian flag (via Daily Mail).
At the gig, held at the Soho Theatre, the comedian reportedly encouraged the crowd to chant “Free Palestine”. Afterwards, organisers at the venue issued an apology and stated that it had banned Currie from performing there again.
In a crowdfunding campaign, the comedian’s supporters have said that the incident “had no connection to their religion – which was not, and could not have been, known to Paul or to anyone else.”
Now, the comic has taken to social media to claim that he will no longer be “allowed” to perform at Glastonbury, due to the Campaign Against Anti-Semitism (CAA) allegedly putting ‘pressure’ on the festival’s organisers not to book him again.
However, in a statement shared with the Daily Mail, festival bosses reportedly have stated that he was never booked to participate in this year’s instalment.
That being said, according to a new update on Currie’s Instagram account, the comedian seems to suggest that he thought he would be appearing this year, but the offer was withdrawn due to the controversy at the February show.
“Oops, so what I should have said is I thought I *was* playing Glastonbury… but sadly I am not allowed to be there,” he wrote in the carousel post.
“Unfortunately and heartbreakingly the festival have decided to cancel me this year, after 13 wonderful years bringing joy and silliness to the thousands of families and revellers who came to join in my silly shows over the years on the riser stages.
“I will continue to fight to defend my reputation and more importantly, to defend my right to speak out against atrocities in Palestine – as I know so many of you do too,” he added, also accusing the CAA of being a “Zionist extremist pressure group”.
NME has reached out to Glastonbury organisers for comment.
Following the incident at the gig at Soho Theatre, the venue organisers shared a statement which read: “We are sorry and saddened by an incident that took place at our venue at the end of a performance of Paul Currie: Shtoom on Saturday 10 of February which has caused upset and hurt to members of audience attending and others.
“We take this very seriously and are looking into the detail of what happened as thoroughly, as sensitively, and as quickly as we can. It is important to us that Soho Theatre is welcoming and inclusive place for all.”
There has since been a crowdfunding campaign launched in support of the comic, in which the venue is accused of “falsely brand[ing] Paul Currie antisemitic and [trying] to destroy his career.”
The festival will return to Worthy Farm near Pilton, Somerset in the final weekend of June, from Wednesday June 26 to Sunday June 30.
The bulk of the Glastonbury 2024 line-up has been shared, with Dua Lipa, Coldplay and SZA set to headline the iconic Pyramid Stage. Shania Twain, meanwhile, will perform in the coveted legends slot. Check out the rest of the bill here.
The festival has also begun to unveil the line-ups for individual stages, including the Acoustic Stage, which will be headlined by Scouting For Girls, Ocean Colour Scene and Gipsy Kings.
This year will also see the debut for the first ever dedicated South Asian stage, named Arrivals. Artists on the line-up include Bobby Friction, Anish Kumar, Nabihah Iqbal and Nikki Nair. Similarly, the entire Shangri-La line-up has also been announced, with names including Kneecap, Bob Vylan and Lambrini Girls set to feature.