Entertainment
Comedians Sophie Duker and Kemah Bob quit all-female panel show Yesterday, Today And The Day Before over ‘unacceptable interference’
Comedians Sophie Duker and Kemah Bob have quit the all-female panel show Yesterday, Today And The Day Before over censorship disputes.
The pair cited ‘unacceptable levels of last-minute interference’ from the makers of the Comedy Central programme after announcing their exit.
It came after edits were made to Sophie’s opening monologue on the topical show’s first episode last week, with the 31-year-old saying she was put into ‘several compromising positions’.
Writing about her decision on Instagram, Sophie said that her comments on the Israeli-Palestinian violence in Jerusalem and remarks about antisemitism among liberals had been cut from the final version of the show.
She wrote: ‘If I am speaking as me, in my own voice, about such important topics, I must either have written what I am saying or feel comfortable that I fully believe and understand the content and message of the speech I’m given.
‘Measures have already been put in place to avoid what happened to me happening again, but the fact that it occurred at all means that I do not think returning to host is sensible for me.’
Sophie went on to say: ‘I hope incidents like these prompt the gatekeepers to reflect upon which power structures they are serving and reinforcing and what kind of talent they are failing to retain.’
Kemah was also due to co-host the show, but also confirmed that she had also left the show ‘in solidarity with my friends/colleagues and the people of Palestine’, adding that Sophie was ‘mistreated by trying to do what she was hired to do – use her voice’.
The show is due to go ahead as planned this evening, with Suzi Ruffel and Maisie Adams co-presenting tonight’s episode with Ola Labib and Ria Lina.
Both Sophie and Kemah also said that they supported their co-stars who decided to stay on the show.
The official description of the programme, which launched last week, reads: ‘A female-led panel of famous comedy faces offer a fresh and unique take on all that’s happened in the world, poring over topical news, pop culture and funny anecdotes.
‘Guests are also involved, injecting unpredictability into the discussion and inspiring a topic for a section of the show dedicated to them.’
Metro.co.uk has reached out to Comedy Central for comment.
Yesterday, Today And The Day Before continues tonight at 9pm on Comedy Central
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