Alex Kingston has branded cancel culture “fascist”, claiming it has left her generation “treading on eggshells” with what to say.
The Doctor Who actress, 61, shared her fear of being canceled after admitting she gets ‘really confused’ about pronouns.
Alex said the idea of cancel culture is “terrifying” and “dangerous” because there is a lack of empathy or sympathy when you “unintentionally hurt someone” by saying the wrong thing.
She said The Telegraph: “Cancel culture is terrifying. A bit fascist, actually. I don’t think people realize how dangerous it is to cancel people, which is what they have done historically.
“My generation is treading on eggshells, not knowing if what you say will unintentionally hurt someone. For example, I get very confused about pronouns.
Alex Kingston, 61, has branded cancel culture ‘fascist’, claiming it has left her generation ‘treading on eggshells’ with what to say
The Doctor Who actress shared her fear of being canceled after admitting she gets ‘really confused’ about pronouns
‘I’m just not sure how and when to use them. There is no empathy or sympathy; opinions are direct and black and white.’
Like Alex, Frank Skinner, Jimmy Carr and Ricky Gervais have previously been open about their views on cancel culture.
In April, broadcaster Frank revealed what he thinks about cancel culture while discussing what it’s like to be a comedian in today’s society.
The broadcaster has had an impressive 40-year career in comedy, and during an appearance on Loose Women he confessed that he doesn’t believe cancel culture has had a negative effect on the industry.
When asked by panelist Coleen Nolan whether he finds it harder to make jokes in the times we live in, he admitted: “I don’t want to say the things we’re supposedly not allowed to say.”
Fellow comedian Ricky has been incredibly vocal about his disapproval of the woke phenomenon and more recently Jimmy said he will never apologize for his comedy.
Frank, however, took a less forthright approach, joking: “It’s not like I’m sitting there thinking, ‘Oh, I can’t use my 40 minutes of racist material.’ I just want to go out and people have a good time.”
He continued, “So I don’t really want to hurt anyone’s feelings in the audience, I don’t want to shock anyone.”
Alex said the idea of cancel culture is “terrifying” and “dangerous” because there is a lack of empathy or sympathy when you “unintentionally hurt someone” by saying the wrong thing.
She said: “Cancel culture is terrifying. A bit fascist, actually. I don’t think people realize how dangerous it is to cancel people, which is what they have done historically. ‘My generation is treading on eggshells and doesn’t know if what you say will unintentionally hurt someone’
She added, “For example, I get really confused about pronouns. I’m just not sure how and when to use them. There is no empathy or sympathy – opinions are direct and black and white’ (depicted in Doctor Who in 2010)
Coleen replied: ‘You get a lot of comics saying it’s not the same, so it’s refreshing to hear that.’
Frank added, “Yeah, you know, if I’m going to shock them, it’s just going to be the shock that I’m still alive.”
In 2021, Ricky slammed cancel culture and described “wokeness” as “a strange kind of fascism” amid calls for “the free exchange of information and ideas.”
He said: ‘There’s a new, strange kind of fascism of people who think they know what you can and can’t say, and that’s very strange. Just because you’re offended doesn’t mean you’re right.’
The Afterlife star previously said further talkRadio: ‘There’s a new trendy myth that people who want freedom of speech want to say terrible things all the time.
‘It’s just not true, it protects everyone. If you’re a little left-wing on Twitter, you’re suddenly Trotsky, right?
“If you are a little bit conservative, you are Hitler, and if you are centrist and look at both arguments, you are a coward. Just because you’re offended doesn’t mean you’re right.’
Meanwhile, Jimmy admitted earlier this month that he doesn’t engage in criticism of his comedy, arguing that jokes are “like magnets: they attract some people and repel others.”
Like Alex, Frank Skinner (pictured), Jimmy Carr and Ricky Gervais have previously been outspoken about their views on cancel culture.
Fellow comedian Ricky Gervais has been incredibly vocal about his disapproval of the woke phenomenon and more recently Jimmy Car said he will never apologize for his comedy.
When asked by panelist Coleen Nolan whether he finds it harder to make jokes in the times we live in, he admitted: “I don’t want to say the things we’re supposedly not allowed to say.”
He joked: ‘It’s not like I sit there and think, ‘Oh, I can’t use my 40 minutes of racist material’, I just want to go out and people have a good time’
Ricky said in 2021: ‘If you are mildly conservative you are Hitler and if you are centrist and look at both arguments you are a coward. Just because you’re offended doesn’t mean you’re right.”
Appearing on The Development by David Podcast, he said: “I try not to get involved with it. I’m going out of my way to say that it’s absolutely true that people don’t like some of my jokes.
‘Jokes are like magnets: they attract some people and repel others. Some people hate my sense of humor, they don’t like it and they don’t come to the shows or watch the Netflix specials.
“But when the new Netflix comes out, a clip comes online and it appears in someone’s feed and they look at it and say, ‘Ban this filth, this joke is so terrible I have to send it to everyone. damn it.” But you have to judge that carefully.’
He recalled, “I remember James Corden was really sweet the last time I got canceled. He called me and said, ‘What happened? No, I’ll tell you what happened. You told a joke and some people didn’t like it. That was it. Let’s have lunch.’