“Monty Python” legend John Cleese is doubling down on his months-long string of incendiary posts about Islam after activists filed a grievance that requested Britain’s counter-radicalization program to scrutinize him over the missives.
“How exciting,” the 86-year-old comic wrote after studying that a member of the public had referred him to Prevent, a British authorities program designed to intervene when authorities believe someone may be weak to radicalization or turning into concerned in terrorism.
The September 22 referral, first reported by Muslim-focused British information outlet 5Pillars, accused Cleese of a “sustained pattern” of online exercise that “demonizes, dehumanizes, and collectively attributes violence and criminality to Muslims and Islam.”
John Cleese speaks onstage during the “An Hour with John Cleese: There Are Those Who Call Him…John!” session during the 2024 Dragon Con at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis, Saturday, Aug. 31, 2024, in Atlanta, Ga. Getty Images
It claimed his posts met “several indicators used in PREVENT risk assessments for anti-Muslim hate and counter-extremism concerns” and warned that his rhetoric could contribute to “radicalization, communal tension, and hate incidents.”
The complainant reportedly assessed the risk as “moderate to high.”
Among the materials cited was a July 18 repost describing Islam as “the religion of pedophiles,” according to 5Pillars.
The grievance also cited a March 31 post in which Cleese referred to “a culture whose holy book advocates the killing of all the people they disagree with,” as nicely as an April post describing a spiritual follow as “a barbaric custom” across “about 60 Muslim countries.”
“These statements go beyond criticism of ideas and attach intrinsic criminality, violence, and moral depravity to a religious group,” the complainant alleged.
But Cleese called the episode “All good comedy material. For those with a sense of humor.”
Muslim activists in Birmingham have launched a video condemning British comic John Cleese forward of his go to to carry out in the metropolis. The activists accuse Cleese of selling anti-Muslim and anti-Islam views, pointing to a sequence of controversial feedback he has made about Islam and Muslims on X. Instagram/@deen1fied
The actor has rejected accusations that his criticism quantities to hatred of Muslims, describing himself instead as “Islamosceptic.”
He has argued that Islam, its teachings and practices should be open to ridicule just as Christianity was in the Monty Python troupe’s 1979 spiritual satire “Life of Brian.”
“Criticism of Islam is not racist, it’s culturalist,” Cleese wrote in February, citing feminine genital mutilation as an instance.
The following month, he said “traditional British values are under attack from Muslim belief systems.”
He then wrote that the “Koran’s teaching is ALL about acquiring power, killing ‘infidels’ and imposing Islam on everyone.”
The referral does not imply Cleese has been arrested, charged with a crime or formally accused of terrorism.
From left, Eric Idle, John Cleese, Graham Chapman, Terry Jones and Michael Palin are proven in “Monty Python and the Holy Grail” in 1975. Courtesy Everett Collection
Prevent operates in what the British authorities calls the “non-criminal space,” with referrals assessed to decide whether someone may need intervention.
Cases can be closed without further motion, while those deemed applicable can be referred to Channel, a voluntary intervention program for people thought of weak to radicalization.
There is no public evidence that Cleese has been positioned in Channel or subjected to a prison investigation. But the extraordinary grievance nevertheless put one of Britain’s most well-known comedians into a authorities system created to head off radicalization.
