Find Live comedy

Omid Djalili: Naked prank got me kicked out of school

...and he went on to fail his A-levels six times!

comedy Omid Djalili has revealed he was kicked out of school – after getting naked for a dare.

The comic was thrown out of Holland Park School in West London – an institution once dubbed ‘the socialist Eton’ – after her tried to emulate Monty Python’s Terry Jokes as a prank.

Appearing on Rhod Gilbert’s Growing Pains on Comedy Central tonight, he said: ‘There were always people daring me to do things, and I kept doing them.

‘I loved Monty Python – that scene when Terry Jones plays the piano – so one dare was to go in naked to play the piano, turn around and smile at the teachers and run out.

Ian Bottle / Alamy Stock Photo

‘Later, I came back trying to grovel to get back into sixth form, they said, "No, you showed your hairy arse one too many times, you’re not a good example".’

Djalili went on to fail his A-levels six times – but faked his results to gain entry to Ulster University in Coleraine, Northern Ireland.

Thanks for reading. If you find Chortle’s coverage of the comedy scene useful or interesting, please consider supporting us with a monthly or one-off ko-fi donation.

Any money you contribute will directly fund more reviews, interviews and features – the sort of in-depth coverage that is increasingly difficult to fund from ever-squeezed advertising income, but which we think the UK’s vibrant comedy scene deserves.

Subscribe or donate here

Published: 13 May 2024