Maureen Lipman claims cancel culture could ‘wipe out’ comedy: ‘Sooner or later the cancellers will win’

‘It’s in the balance whether we will ever be funny again,’ actor says

Maureen Lipman has claimed that a “revolution” is taking place in the comedy world over so-called cancel culture.

The actor and comedian told the BBC she believes comedy could be “wiped out” due to fears of being cancelled.

Cancel culture is a term used to describe attempts to “cancel” a person or group for what are deemed unacceptable behaviour or views.

“It's in the balance whether we will ever be funny again,” Lipman said.

“Cancel culture, this cancelling, this punishment, it's everywhere. Punishment. An eye for an eye. ‘You said that, therefore you must never work again.’ Sooner or later the cancellers will win.”

In a recent interview with The Independent, actor and activist Michael Sheen criticised the amount of airtime “cancel culture” is given in the media, calling it a “waste of time”.

“That’s all you read about now,” the Welsh star said. “For every column that’s about cancel culture, there’s one fewer for real dangers and unfairnesses.

“The idea that being aware of social issues and aware of the injustices done to certain people, both historically and in the present, the idea that that gets labelled as woke and then is used as a pejorative, it just makes it so easy for people on the right, doesn’t it?”

Sheen said spending time discussing cancel culture was “like microwave dinners as politics”.