Little Britain creator Matt Lucas is branded ‘a hypocrite’ and blasted for ‘making a killing out of blackface and mocking the disabled’ as he wades in on Kanye West Wireless Festival row

Little Britain creator Matt Lucas has faced criticism for weighing in on Kanye West’s appointment to head up the Wireless Festival in July.

The 52-year-old Jewish comedian joined calls to rally against organizers’ decision after Kanye, 48, made repeated anti-Semitic and pro-Nazi statements on social media, and has since apologized and blamed his bipolar disorder.

He went to X to write: “Have you released a song called ‘Heil Hitler’?” Have you sold T-shirts with swastikas on them? Did you promise to commit ‘death fraud on the Jewish people’? If so, congratulations! You may be eligible to headline @WirelessFest.

The post was soon met with outrage from followers, who pointed out that 2003’s Little Britain show and 2010’s Come Fly With Me, which she starred in and co-wrote with David Walliams, were full of problematic characters.

Matt was branded a “hypocrite” for using “lazy racist caricatures”, and he and David apologized in 2020 when Little Britain was removed from streaming services for their use of blackface and able-bodied characters.

Little Britain creator Matt Lucas has come under fire for getting into a row when Kanye West signed on to headline Wireless Festival in July (a Jamaican woman in her 50s who runs a coffee bar is depicted as Precious Little in the 2010 mockumentary Come Fly with Me).

The 52-year-old Jewish comedian joined calls to rally against organizers’ decision after Kanye, 48, made repeated anti-Semitic and pro-Nazi statements on social media, and has since apologized and blamed his bipolar disorder (Kanye withdrew in 2022)

He went to X to write: “Have you released a song called ‘Heil Hitler’?” Have you sold T-shirts with swastikas on them? Did you promise to commit ‘death fraud on the Jewish people’? If so, congratulations! You might be eligible to headline @WirelessFest

Kanye’s signing sparked widespread outrage, with Prime Minister Keir Starmer saying it was “deeply concerning” that the American rapper would headline all three nights at London’s Finsbury Park.

Before apologizing and citing his mental health, Kanye wore swastikas and ‘White Lives Matter’ t-shirts, called himself a Nazi, released a song praising Hitler and said he would commit ‘Death scam 3 against the Jewish people’.

His actions have led to growing calls for him to be banned from the UK altogether. He hasn’t appeared on stage in the country for 11 years.

The Minister of Internal Affairs may refuse a visa if it is concluded that the presence of foreign nationals is ‘not conducive to the public interest’. Four sponsors have withdrawn from the festival since the outrage began.

Joining the screams, Matt spoke about the signing with his sarcastic message about how his previous insults and actions went unnoticed.

The message was quickly met with reaction; many people referenced Matt’s characters wearing blackface, including Pastor Jesse King, Desiree DeVere, and Thai bride Ting Tong, among other racial stereotypes.

Many of the posts featured a photo of Matt dressed as Precious Little, a Jamaican woman in her 50s who manages a terminal coffee kiosk in the mockumentary Come Fly with Me.

One angry user wrote: ‘Is mat for real? The man who kills blackface and mocks disabled people. ‘Little Britain was hilarious but come on… some self-awareness would be nice’

Critics wrote: ‘You weren’t having a bipolar episode when you made Blackface?… Is that you, mate? Were you in the middle of an unmedicated bipolar episode? ‘What’s your excuse for racially insulting?’

In a sign of how he was profiting from the sketches, one Twitter user shared images of his 2005 Little Britain Talking Plush toys, including Andy, Lou and David as spa guest Desiree DeVere.

He also dressed up to play passenger liaison officer Moses Beacon and airline boss Omar Baba in In Come Fly With Me. The accusation of abelism arises from the character of wheelchair user Andy Pipkin and his carer Lou.

Critics wrote: ‘You weren’t going through a bipolar episode when you did blackface, were you?… Is that you, dude? Were you in the middle of an unmedicated bipolar episode? What’s your excuse for racist attack?

‘kettle meet the pot… @RealMattLucas goes morally high… People in glass houses… Your career is built on lazy racist caricatures of minorities on TV every week. BBC ‘For years so yes I can believe this is happening.’

One angry user wrote: ‘Is mat for real? The man who kills blackface and mocks disabled people. ‘Little Britain was hilarious but come on… some self-awareness would be lovely’.

In a sign of how he was profiting from the sketches, one Twitter user shared images of his 2005 Little Britain Talking Plush toys, including Andy, Lou and David as spa guest Desiree DeVere.

But others defended the star, insisting that Kanye supported Hitler while Matt’s was just a comedy sketch: ‘Are we really connecting comedy with support for Hitler? Crazy times… Can’t you really think these two things are comparable?’

But others defended the star, insisting that Kanye supported Hitler while Matt’s was just a comedy sketch: ‘Are we really connecting comedy with support for Hitler? Crazy times… Can’t you really think these two things are comparable?…

I don’t think ‘Ye’ should be cancelled, but glorifying Nazism is very different from making jokes about race and disability… There’s a difference between mocking and genocide… Yeah, and that was funny too…

‘KW is not much but I don’t think it should be banned. This country allowed Kneecap to perform…”

Matt had insisted on this before ‘There was no ill will there’ and they had just shown ‘what a variety of people we can play with’.

Kanye West performing at Wireless Festival in Birmingham in 2014

In the interview, Matt said it was “lazy” for white people to “laugh just playing black characters.” David also said the show will definitely make a comeback, but admitted it will change some things.

In a statement posted on Twitter, David wrote: ‘Matt and I have publicly expressed our regret for portraying characters of other races in recent years. ‘Once again, we want to make it clear that this is wrong and we are very sorry.’

Matt and David have previously apologized for using blackface in the programme, which started as a radio show in 2000 and aired as a TV series on the BBC between 2003 and 2007, launching their respective careers.

The Daily Mail contacted Matt for comment.