A Jewish group wrote to Glastonbury organisers about the Jeremy Corbyn film (Picture: Matt Cardy/Getty Images)
Glastonbury Festival has axed a screening of a film about former Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn following complaints.
The Worthy Farm festival was due to show Oh, Jeremy Corbyn… The Big Lie this Sunday.
Produced by Platform Films, the feature-length documentary film ‘explores a dark and murky story of political deceit and outrageous antisemitic smears.’
However, the screening will no longer take place after backlash from a leading Jewish group.
Marie van der Zyl, president of Jewish communal organisation the Board of Deputies, wrote to Glasto bosses.
She said it would be ‘profoundly sinister’ for the doc to be shown at the festival.
The film will no longer be shown at the festival this weekend (Picture: Matt Cardy/Getty Images)
Corbyn appeared on the Pyramid Stage in 2017 to address the crowd (Picture: EPA)
In a letter to organisers Michael and Emily Eavis, she expressed ‘deep concern’.
‘This film, we understand, seeks to suggest that organisations such as the Board of Deputies of British Jews, of which I am the president, somehow helped to “orchestrate” Jeremy Corbyn’s downfall as Labour Party leader,’ Ms van der Zyl wrote.
‘Your festival is one of the most successful festivals in the UK,’ she continued.
‘It seems profoundly sinister for it to be providing a platform to a film which clearly seeks to indoctrinate people into believing a conspiracy theory effectively aimed at Jewish organisations.
‘We would request that you not allow your festival to be hijacked by those seeking to promote hatred with no basis in fact, in the same way as we would hope that your festival would not screen films seeking to promote other conspiracy theories, such as anti-vaccination, 9/11 truthers or chemtrails.’
Glastonbury then pulled the film from their schedule, insisting that the film was to be screened ‘in good faith’.
A statement attributed to Glastonbury said: ‘Although we believe that the Pilton Palais booked this film in good faith, in the hope of provoking political debate, it’s become clear that it is not appropriate for us to screen it at the festival.
‘Glastonbury is about unity and not division, and we stand against all forms of discrimination.’
Ms van der Zyl and the Board of Deputies welcomed the decision.
In response to the development, they said on Twitter: ‘We are pleased that in the wake of a letter we sent earlier today, @glastonbury have announced the cancellation of the screening of this film.
‘Hateful conspiracy theories should have no place in our society.’
Meanwhile, Corbyn made an appearance himself at Glastonbury in 2017 in one of the most hotly-anticipated festival moments that year.
Calling for unity, the politician took to the stage to address thousands of young revellers, urging former US President Donald Trump to build ‘bridges not walls’.
Glasto returns this weekend with Sir Elton John, Guns N’ Roses, and more performing (Picture: Getty Images)
Speaking on the famous Pyramid Stage, Corbyn earned a roar from the crowd.
‘Politics is actually about everyday life. It’s about all of us: what we dream, what we want, what we achieve and what we want for everybody else,’ he said in part of his speech.
‘The commentariat got it wrong, the elites got it wrong. Politics is about the lives of all of us. The wonderful campaign I was a part of and led, brought people back to politics because they believed there was something on offer for them.’
Introducing Corbyn, Eavis himself referred to him as the ‘hero of the hour’.
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The group said it would be ‘profoundly sinister’ for the documentary to be shown.
