Russell Howard has defended his decision to walk off stage five minutes into a stand up gig after he spotted a woman filming in the front row.
The comedian, who was trying out new material at the outdoor gig in Bristol last month, confronted the woman mid-performance.
After seeing she was filming, Russell stopped and told her “that’s literally the worst thing you can do”.
According to BristolLive, he then told the woman to “live in the moment” before telling her that she’d “ruined it now”.
“I was really looking forward to this gig,” Russell told the crowd before apologising, picking up his backpack from behind the stage area and heading for the exit.
Speaking about the incident for the first time, Russell has said he “probably did the right thing” and that other performers would back his decision.
“I was amazed that it went as big as it did, because you know, there’s a lot going on in the world at the moment, but apparently a wonky-eyed comedian telling a lady to live in the moment trumped all of that,” he said.
“You won’t find any kind of artist, or performer, or comedian, or musician that would feel differently. Particularly if you’re doing a small gig, and somebody’s recording it, it’s not going to be good for you and it’s not going to be good for the performer.
“It’s just pretty simple. But I dunno, I was surprised at how crazy it went. But I think I probably did the right thing.”
Comedians frequently require audience members to leave their phones switched off during gigs.
Saturday Night Live star Pete Davidson reportedly asked fans to sign a non-disclosure agreement before a performance in San Francisco last year. The fine for breaking the NDA was one million dollars.
Dave Chappelle also bars phones from his sets, and many performers fear their material leaking.