POLICE confirm “no crime” took place at a Reginald D Hunter comedy gig following a report of a “hate incident” over an Israel joke at his Edinburgh Fringe show.
Two Israelis were reportedly heckled out of his Sunday performance by the audience following their objection to the 55-year-old US comedian’s joke.
Eastwood Theatre in Giffnock, which was not the venue where the incident took place, announced on Friday that it would not go ahead with Hunter’s September show.
It has removed the listing from its website as well.
On Thursday, Hunter said he regretted an “unfortunate incident” at his Fluffy Fluffy Beavers Edinburgh Festival Fringe show at Assembly George Square Studios.
Police Scotland confirmed the same day that it was reviewing “a hate incident” from the Sunday event.
A Police Scotland spokesperson said in a statement: “We were made aware of a hate incident, which reportedly took place at an event in Edinburgh on Sunday August 11.
“All information gathered was fully reviewed and no crime was established.”
Assembly George Square Studios confirmed there are no plans to cancel Hunter's gigs at its venue, which are set to run until August 25.
A spokesperson for the venue said: “We are aware of two members of the audience choosing to leave Reginald D Hunter’s performance on Sunday August 11.
“The venue front of house team attended and supported them upon exiting.”
East Renfrewshire Culture and Leisure’s spokesperson said that it cancelled Hunter’s show on September 28, “due to controversial comments made during a recent performance”.
The statement added: “We defend the freedom of expression of artists and understand that our audiences expect to extend some latitude to many acts, including alternative comedy which may be controversial in places. However, we have a commitment to our community, and to our values of diversity and inclusion, which we take seriously.
“All customers who have purchased tickets for this show will receive a full refund.”
Hunter’s performance was reportedly left by two people following the audience booing them over their objection to Hunter’s joke about Israel, which was called “extremely concerning” by the Campaign Against Antisemitism.
Hunter, who regularly tours the UK and has appeared on comedy panel shows Never Mind The Buzzcocks, Have I Got News For You and 8 Out Of 10 Cats, posted a statement on his social media accounts saying that as a “comedian, I do push boundaries in creating humour, it’s part of my job”.
“This inevitably created divided opinions but I am staunchly anti-war and anti-bully,” he added.
“I regret any stress caused to the audience and venue staff members.”
Hunter's anti-war comment appears to be a reference to the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Recent figures from this week show the death toll in Gaza has surpassed 40,000 Palestinians since the beginning of Israel’s bombardment of the territory.
More than 85% of the population in Gaza have been displaced from their homes since the war began.
The Campaign Against Antisemitism wrote on X that “comedians are rightly given broad latitude, but they also have a responsibility to their audience” following the news of the incident at Hunter's gig.
The campaign group claimed the two people were Israelis and were “hounded” from the show by the audience after their objection to one of the comedian's jokes.
