Comedian Paul Currie says he’s “not allowed” to play Glastonbury after row with audience member over Palestine

nme.com:

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Instagram account, the comedian seems to suggest that he thought he would be appearing this year, but the offer was withdrawn due to the controversy at the February show.“Oops, so what I should have said is I thought I *was* playing Glastonbury… but sadly I am not allowed to be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.A post shared by Paul Currie (@paulcurriecomedian)“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.