- Written by James Gregory & Ita Dungan
- BBC News in London and Belfast
The incident occurred at a live performance by comedian Paul Curry.
A Jewish man who was told to “leave” a comedy performance in London said the city had become a “horrible” place since the October 7 Hamas attack.
Liahab Eitan told BBC News that it had become “not easy” and “quite unwelcoming” for Israelis and Jews living there.
His comments follow an incident at comedian Paul Curry’s show at the Soho Theater on Saturday night in which a Jewish audience member was made to feel “unsafe”.
Mr. Curry was banned from performing in theaters.
The comedian has not yet responded to a request for comment from the BBC.
The theater said in a statement that a Jewish attendee was “subjected to verbal abuse” and the comedian “actively requested” to be removed from the performance.
The incident occurred about five minutes before Curry’s performance, the last of a three-night show in SoHo, ended after he unveiled the Ukrainian and Palestinian flags.
Mr Eitan told the BBC that he found the comparison “quite upsetting”, adding that he had not “registered for this political protest” and was unable to enjoy the rest of the show, but sat down and said, He added that he was sitting there.
He claimed he was sworn in by Mr Curry because his friend couldn’t bear to applaud after the comedian asked the pair if they enjoyed their performance.
He said he told Curry he was enjoying the show until he raised the Palestinian flag.
“He turned us against him in a way,” Eitan said. “He started raising his voice, calling us names and using foul language.
“Unfortunately, we actually had to go on stage to get to the exit. He waved the Palestinian flag at us again, called our names, and asked the whole crowd to join him. We had to walk past him when he was trying to get us to sing along.” “Ceasefire now!” People shouted “shameful” and booed. ”
Eitan, who celebrated his 33rd birthday on Saturday, said he felt the situation could have been “quite dangerous and very quick”, but later felt he was in even more danger on the street outside the theater.
“The rest of the audience was led out through another door to meet everyone who clearly recognized us as actually being on stage,” he said.
”[We] There I saw a rather unfriendly stare. ”
Liahab Eitan said a night out at the Soho Theater was a “spontaneous” decision before making reservations for a late dinner.
Eitan added that he had changed his habits in London since the conflict between Israel and Hamas began, including avoiding walking in the city during the day on Saturdays due to pro-Palestinian protests.
“The last four months I have lived in London as a Jewish Israeli since October 7th have not been easy,” he said. “The city is pretty unwelcoming at the moment.”
He said he plans to do a little research on the artist before going to see another comedy show in the future.
“Overwhelming”
But he said the public support since the event had been “pretty overwhelming and in stark contrast to what I felt at the theater that night.”
“I think this shows a huge contrast between what’s happening in London and what might be happening in other parts of this country,” he added.
The BBC spoke to another Jewish man who was at Saturday’s performance but wished to remain anonymous. Fearing for his safety, he reportedly left the theater.
Another audience member at Saturday’s show, who requested anonymity, told the BBC the incident was “shocking”.
But he said he got the impression that Curry was making “political points” about the Gaza conflict, such as “the importance of a ceasefire.”
According to Mr. Curry’s recollection, he did not use the words “Jewish,” “Judaism,” or “Zionism.”
The Metropolitan Police said on Monday that it was aware of the incident and that an investigation was ongoing.