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Jewish comedians pulled from Fringe venues amid social media row

29 Jul 2025

Two Jewish comedians have had their Edinburgh Festival Fringe shows cancelled, prompting a wave of criticism and renewed concern over antisemitism in the British arts scene.

I am still processing the concept that in 2025 I can be cancelled just for being Jewish

Rachel Creeger and Philip Simon were both due to perform at Whistlebinkies, a venue that is part of the PBH Free Fringe. Creeger’s show Ultimate Jewish Mother and Simon’s Jewish comedy line-up Jew-O-Rama were dropped last week. Simon’s solo show Shall I Compere Thee in a Funny Way?, scheduled for the Banshee Labyrinth, was also later cancelled.

The venues said their decisions were based on staff safety concerns and Simon’s social media activity. According to a statement given to comedy site Chortle, Banshee Labyrinth said it withdrew Simon’s show following a “routine” review of public posts that they claim “align with the rhetoric and symbology of groups associated with humanitarian violations”. The venue cited Simon’s tweets that questioned why pro-Palestinian voices were not also acknowledging Israeli hostages and criticised celebrity support for Gaza without mention of the October 7 Hamas attacks.

Simon rejected the accusations, writing on Facebook that he has “never expressed support for anything other than freeing the hostages and finding a way for peace”. He added, “As a Jewish person living in Britain it is possible, and increasingly common, to have a love for Israel without supporting the actions of the government.” He said he was “still processing the concept that in 2025 I can be cancelled just for being Jewish”.

UK Lawyers for Israel claimed the cancellations were illegal under the Equality Act and described them as “a racist move that echoes 1930s Nazi Germany”. The group said it had written to Whistlebinkies asserting that the comedians were dropped because of their Jewish identity.

Oi Va Voi, a British Jewish band, also responded online, calling the cancellations part of a broader pattern. “This experience is all too familiar,” they wrote on Facebook. “The censorship and cancelling of Jewish performers in the British arts scene must stop.”

Luke Meredith, CEO of the PBH Free Fringe, told Chortle that the decisions were made by the venues independently. He cited a rise in political graffiti and staff concerns over police notices from last year.

A Chortle reader poll found that 75 percent of respondents believed it was wrong for the venues to cancel the shows.

Simon is still due to appear at the Fringe in a children’s show and said he was exploring alternative spaces for his cancelled performances. He urged audiences not to boycott the venues, adding that he wanted other acts “to have a productive and safe month”.

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