British comedy legend John Cleese faced criticism on social media for posting a tweet in which he said London was "not really an English city any more".
ADVERTISEMENTBritish comedy legend John Cleese faced criticism on social media for posting a tweet in which he said London was "not really an English city any more".
Early on Wednesday morning, the actor, who part of the famed Monty Python comedy group and co-wrote and starred in Fawlty Towers, posted the tweet to his 5.6 million followers saying his friends from abroad agreed with him "so there must be some truth in it".
The actor also noted London was the UK city most in favour of remaining in the European Union in the 2016 Brexit referendum.
The UK capital saw nearly 60% of inhabitants opt to remain in the EU.
"I suspect I should apologise for my affection for the Englishness of my upbringing," Cleese later responded to critics, "but in some ways I found it calmer, more polite, more humorous, less tabloid, and less money-oriented than the one that is replacing it."
Some high-profile British figures were quick to point out the 79-year-old previously said he was moving the Caribbean because he was disappointed in Britain
Author Caitlin Moran was among them and said: "John Cleese is in the process of moving to Nevis, in the Caribbean. I hope there's a old Nevisian comedian ready to moan about how Charlestown won't 'really be a Nevisian town any more.' Goddamn immigrants."
While writer James Felton tweeted: "Hi I'm John Cleese. Today I'll be complaining there are too many immigrants in London from my home where I live in the Caribbean."
Cleese said he would vote for Brexit ahead of the referendum, arguing the quality of debate around Brexit was "awful".