John Cleese says he will reschedule Israel shows, ‘is hugely fond of Israeli audiences’

British comedian and actor John Cleese announced on X on Tuesday that he wasn’t canceling his upcoming performances in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv but rather rescheduling them “following advice about safety.”

“At 86, that is obviously all important,” wrote Cleese.

The “Monty Python” star wrote that he would rearrange the shows as soon as possible, and would be happy to perform them without receiving any fee.

“I am hugely fond of Israeli audiences and send my sincere apologies to all the people who bought tickets,” wrote Cleese.

After Cleese posted his clarification about his shows, followers posted reactions, several asking why the actor had spent the last weeks retweeting Nazis and known Hamas propagandists, while others opined that he’d lost his standards and was a fascist apologist.

Cleese said in his post that he was clarifying the claims made by Alon Yurik Productions, the Israeli production company behind the planned performances, which announced Sunday that the British actor was canceling due to threats from the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement against Israel.

“We regret that John Cleese gave in to threats from the BDS organizations and that is after all the tickets for his shows were sold out long ago,” wrote the company, Alon Yurik Productions, in a statement.

For several days before the comedian announced the cancellation of his shows, Cleese was reposting anti-Israel comments and media on his X account, including false claims, and videos of actor Mandy Patinkin raging against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and actor Mark Ruffalo railing against his Jewish friends. Cleese was previously not known to have a stance particularly critical of Israel, and performed here a few years ago.

On Tuesday, he reposted a video of Irish President Michael Higgins complaining about how criticism of Israel is considered antisemitism and added, “Many, many Jews criticise Netanyahu, Are they all being antisemitic ?”

He also reposted a video of an Israel soldier who suffers from PTSD, speaking to the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee in September about the trauma he has endured from service in Gaza. In the clip, the soldier, Israel Hayat, speaks only of his mental health issues, but a caption from another X user accompanying the clip reads, “I slaughtered countless babies for Israel, and this is the thanks I get?” though Hayat did not say anything like that.

“More information please,” Cleese wrote in his repost.

Many, many Jews criticise Netanyahu

Are they all being antisemitic ? https://t.co/JMkesuPjy5

— John Cleese (@JohnCleese) November 11, 2025

Cleese had already postponed his trip to Israel from June to November, following the war with Iran.

He had been scheduled to perform four shows, one in Jerusalem and three in Tel Aviv, from November 26 to December 1.

Cleese’s comedy career began in 1969 when he co-founded the iconic “Monty Python” troupe alongside Graham Chapman, Terry Jones, Eric Idle, Michael Palin, and Terry Gilliam.

He also created and starred in 1975 in the sitcom “Fawlty Towers,” which achieved cult status among British viewers.

Cleese has lived in Los Angeles since the early 1990s.