Matt Lucas has spoken out against “prejudice” in Britain, in his first public comments after being harassed on the Tube by a pro-Palestine activist.
The Little Britain star was filmed by Islamic convert Thomas Abdullah Bourne as he rode an elevator on the London Underground in February.
Speaking at a charity event for the '45 Aid Society, set up to support child Holocaust survivors in Britain, Mr Lucas said we “have a duty” to educate people about antisemitism.
He said that while he did not want to comment publicly on the incident, he still believes “innately in the goodness of people in Britain”, adding: “Prejudice comes through a lack of education, and we have a duty to educate people about what happened.”
The comments came amid a series of antisemitic attacks, including the stabbing of two Jewish men in Golders Green last week and a string of attacks at synagogues and other Jewish sites in recent months.
Mr Lucas was speaking alongside television presenter and barrister Rob Rinder, who said that a child shouted “Heil Hitler” at him in Soho in the aftermath of the Golders Green attack.
Mr Bourne, a 39-year-old from east London, filmed himself harassing Mr Lucas, who rarely speaks about the Israel-Palestine conflict, seemingly solely on the basis of his Jewish heritage.
He has become a well-known face amongst pro-Palestinian protest groups in London, having been pictured at rallies with Jeremy Corbyn and Bob Vylan.
During the incident, he shouted “Free Palestine” at Mr Lucas, before asking, “You don't like what I'm wearing, do you?”, a reference to his keffiyeh.
As he realised he was being filmed, Mr Lucas attempted to block his face with his right hand.
Mr Bourne went on: “You've got a problem with Palestinians, Matt?” to which Mr Lucas responded with a simple “No”.
Mr Bourne, who is 6'11" and uses the social media handle “White British Muslim”, has since revealed he lost his job as a fundraising consultant as a direct result of the incident.
In an interview with PoliticsJoe, he appeared to suggest Mr Lucas was responsible for starting the altercation.
He said: “I was going up the escalator and looked to my side and saw someone giving me an uncomfortable, even hostile, look and I realised it was Matt Lucas.
“My instant reaction - as anyone's would be who was going to confront someone - was to pull out my camera phone and shout "Free Palestine! Free Palestine!"
“As a result of that video and a subsequent Daily Mail article I actually lost my job.”
There has been a surge of antisemitism incidents across Britain in recent weeks, with counter-terrorism officers investigating a suspected arson at a former synagogue in Whitechapel in the latest attack.
On Wednesday, the Met Police said it had set up a new unit of 100 police officers to defend London's Jewish communities, with Met chief Sir Mark Rowley describing the attacks as a “pandemic” of antisemitism.
