Police Eject Heckler From Aus Comedian's Gig

Police were called in to remove a heckler from a show in Wales by Australian stand-up comedian Celia Pacquola.

The incident, which occurred at the Swansea Grand Theatre last week, was reported to be the first of its kind at the venue.

Theatre manager Paul Hopkins told the BBC, “[The heckler and his friend] were at the front and they had been asked by the comedian in a comedic way to keep quiet. But they wouldn't and other members of the audience were chanting 'out, out, out' at them.

"We don't have a heckler policy…We felt it was necessary to take action to allow the event to continue."

After the gig, audience members tweeted praise to Pacquola - who was short-listed for a Barry Award at this year's Melbourne International Comedy Festival - for how she handled the situation. She tweeted back: "So that really happened then? Thought it was a very strange dream.”

Yesterday one of the ejected pair, identifying himself as Jason Spooner, wrote to the South Wales Evening Post to say that he had said sorry to Pacquola: “When I thought it was getting out of hand I apologised unreservedly to the act and I hoped that would be the end of it.”

Spooner claimed that the only reason he and his companion refused to leave immediately was because they wanted a refund.

Spooner went on to express regret at sitting in the front row. He claims his friend had only responded “in kind” to remarks made by the compere of the event, “As people who go to comedy gigs know, if you sit in the front row you can sometimes be subject to a little ribbing from the acts.”

He claims that Pacquola continued the back-and-forth, “I had apologised and wanted things to move on.”