JOHN CLEESE has sparked fresh controversy online after posting a joke about the Irish on social media.
The Fawlty Towers creator took to Twitter to share the gag, which didn’t go down too well with certain sections of the Twittersphere.
“A man walks into a bar, and asks the barman if he’s heard the latest Irish joke,” he wrote
“The barman says: ‘I should warn you I’m Irish, and so is the owner of the bar over there, and so are Seamus and Sean here, our oldest customers. Now. Are you still going to tell the joke?’
“And the man says: ‘No! No, I don’t want to have to explain it four times’.”
A man walks into a bar, and asks the barman if he's heard the latest Irish joke
The barman says " I should warn you I'm Irish, and so is the owner of the bar over there, and so are Seamus and Sean here, our oldest customers. Now. Are you still going to tell the joke ?'
......— John Cleese (@JohnCleese) January 17, 2020
And the man says ' No ! '
' No, I don't want to have to explain it four times '— John Cleese (@JohnCleese) January 17, 2020
While the gag received a positive reaction in some quarters, it’s fair to say that some of Cleese’s Irish followers were less than amused.
Declan Quinn wrote: “I just don’t approve of anyone encouraging Anti-Irishness! It has a social impact! Britain is the only country where this is done! It was used to justify Occupation! It’s not true, just right and shouldn’t be encouraged!”
He added: “In fact, pretty much the whole world over, the Irish are held in very high regard for their civic, political, sportsman, business, academic, artistic achievements globally - despite such a small country/population! Britain, on the other hand, is NOT held in very high regard......”
I just don’t approve of anyone encouraging Anti-Irishness! It has a social impact! Britain is the only country where this is done! It was used to justify Occupation! It’s not true, just right and shouldn’t be encouraged!
— Declan Quinn (@Decoquinn) January 18, 2020
In fact, pretty much the whole world over, the Irish are held in very high regard for their civic, political, sportsman, business, academic, artistic achievements globally - despite such a small country/population! Britain, on the other hand, is NOT held in very high regard......
— Declan Quinn (@Decoquinn) January 18, 2020
Steadfastly refusing to back down over the gag, Cleese returned with two jokes about Australians
Aussie joke about the English
' Where do you hide a key so that a Pommie ( Englishman ) can't find it ? '
' Under the soap '
Any English person upset by this joke isn't really English— John Cleese (@JohnCleese) January 18, 2020
Another Aussie joke
' How can you tell that an English plane has landed at Sydney airport ? '
' Because the whining goes on after they've turned the engines off '— John Cleese (@JohnCleese) January 18, 2020
It’s not the first time Cleese has made a joke at Ireland’s expense.
Last year he tweeted a gag about how Irish names are “deliberate attempts to mislead innocent people”.
I love your use of words !
But,seriously, if an Irish 'bh' is a 'v' sound, why don't you write it with a 'v' ?
Of course, Bernard Shaw pointed out that in English, the word 'Fish' could be spelled G-H-O-T-I https://t.co/HcUkQRRd1V— John Cleese (@JohnCleese) June 23, 2019
He went on to argue that if “bh” sounded like “v” in Irish, then it should be spelt it as such.
