Father Ted co-creator Graham Linehan may take legal action because comedy show at the Edinburgh Fringe was cancelled.
Graham was set to appear in this show. Leith Arches, the venue, announced the cancellation on Instagram on Tuesday. They found out Graham was the “special guest”. They said they didn’t know about his appearance before.
On Wednesday morning, Graham spoke to TalkTV’s Julia Hartley-Brewer. He said, “They cancelled the show in a few hours. I was excited for just two hours.” He also said that tickets for the show were all sold. “Things like this have happened before. It’s not a great feeling,” he added. The good side? It shows how some groups control many areas in society. Graham said if the venue says sorry and plans the show again, he’ll let it go. If not, he might think of legal steps.
Leith Arches thanked people on Instagram on Tuesday. They were happy people told them about the comedy act for Thursday. They said, “We didn’t know who would perform in advance. We stand for including everyone. So, we decided to cancel this show.”
Earlier, SNP MP Joanna Cherry had a similar issue. The Stand comedy club cancelled her show at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Why? Because of her views on trans rights. But later, the club said sorry. They changed their decision and had more security for the show.
Andy Shaw of Comedy Unleashed spoke to the BBC on Wednesday. He manages the show. He asked, “When will people learn? When will venues support free speech in art?” He also said Graham’s comedy has never been a problem. He believes if the venue waited, they would see Graham’s comedy is just fun. Andy finished by saying, “We don’t like cancel culture. It’s bad for art and treats people like children.”