Leigh Francis has said he ‘doesn’t regret’ any of his controversial behaviour as his TV alter-egos.

The comedian, 51, is best known for his divisive alter-ego Keith Lemon, who became known for his outlandish and misogynistic comments on ITV show Celebrity Juice.

Leigh’s comedy series Bo Selecta was also pulled from Channel 4’s streaming service in 2020, over its portrayal of black celebrities including Craig David and Trisha Goddard.

The removal, following the death of George Floyd and the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement, led Leigh to tearfully apologise for causing ‘any upset’ and said he ‘didn’t realise how offensive it was back then.’

But in a new interview on the Who We Are Now with Izzy & Richard Hammond podcast, Leigh insisted he has no regrets for his past behaviour, but would ‘probably change’ some things if given the chance.

He said: ‘Let’s get cut to the chase. Some people say, ”Do you regret some of the things you did in your past?” No, I don’t. I don’t regret anything. Would I change things? Probably.’ 

Leigh Francis has said he ‘doesn’t regret’ any of his controversial behaviour as his TV alter-egos, but would ‘probably change’ some things

Leigh added that the ‘rules’ of comedy have changed since his first rose to fame, and he’s more mindful with his approach.

He added: ‘You don’t know that back then, and you play to what the rules are back then, where no one is bothered about anything you’re doing. And then rules change.

‘So you would do it different now, because, you know, some people might be upset by things.’ 

‘Things change. And then you look back at things, then you talk to friends, and then you go, ”Oh, I’ll just apologise for what I did.”

‘It’s weird because you don’t set out with malice or anything. And we didn’t think, ”Aren’t we edgy? We’re doing something naughty here.” We just did it because it was silly. And I don’t apologise for Bo’ Selecta, but I apologise for upsetting people that were offended by it.’ 

Leigh went onto add that as a comedian, viewers should never take his jokes too seriously, continuing: ‘I’m a court jester, which is the lowest of the low. ‘Sing and dance, make me laugh.

‘You shouldn’t take what I’m saying seriously, because first of all, my name is not Keith Lemon. I’m acting!

‘And even with people that might have been offended by Keith Lemon, saying he’s misogynistic or something. No, you supposed to be. You’re not laughing with him; you’re laughing at him. He’s a fool!’

The comedian is best known for his divisive alter-ego Keith Lemon, and his comedy series Bo Selecta, which was pulled from Channel 4’s streaming service in 2020

‘He would say things that there’s no way on Earth I would say. But I know people who say such things, and I laugh at them for saying it… You can laugh at people that say horrendous things, I think.’ 

Leigh has previously divided viewers with his controversial characters, and went onto admit that he’s found some of the crticism difficult to handle.

He added: ‘It hurts, doesn’t it? I think anyone saying, ”Oh, you’re a bad man” or whatever, you just go, ”I’m not,” because I’m too daft.

‘I don’t want to p*** people off, you want to make them laugh. And I think everyone, most comedians, just want to make people laugh.’

Leigh previously shared that a planned comeback of his comedy series Bo Selecta! had been shelved, after working on a rebranded pilot of the programme.

He spoke out about his future plans during a question and answer session on social media while touring the UK with his solo comedy show.

He said during on Instagram: ‘Keith Lemon is, well, I’ll never kill any characters off. I don’t ever kill any characters off.

‘Apart from if it’s one that someone is really upset by. Then you don’t do it anymore, because you only d**k about to put smiles on people’s faces.’

Speaking of his solo tour, he added: ‘So if you are pining for a bit of rubber mask tom foolery, here it is, in tour format.’

The reinvention comes after Craig David and Trisha Goddard slammed Leigh for his ‘racist’ depiction of him on his Channel 4 sketch show Bo’ Selecta!.

Leigh (pictured in character as Keith Lemon) said: ‘Let’s get cut to the chase. Some people say, ”Do you regret some of the things you did in your past?” No, I don’t. I don’t regret anything’

Leigh carried out impressions of Craig and other celebrities on the show, including Mel B and Trisha Goddard, and there were many instances of blackface and apologised last year.

Read More Leigh Francis finally reveals the real person who inspired his comic alter ego Keith Lemon

Leigh, who is also hosting a radio show on Virgin said: ‘When I turned 50 I just thought it’s time to do stuff as myself.

‘Comedy wise, as well, I don’t think character comedy’s in fashion at the minute if I’m honest.’

The comedian added: ‘It’s like sketch shows become fashionable, and panel shows – genres of comedy become fashionable.

‘And at the moment I just don’t think that character comedy is fashionable. I might be totally wrong. There’ll probably be some amazing comedian come through playing some character and we’ll all think it’s ace.

‘But just because I turned 50 and you go “I don’t know how long I’ve got left on earth never mind in this business and there’s stuff I want to do as me.

‘Everyone used to say to me “Why don’t you do a grown-up version of Art Attack?” And I would say “What’s a grown up version of Art Attack – me painting with me willy out?” What does that mean?

‘I can do a version of it that’s both for children and adults, because most of the things that I make are stuff from the eighties anyway. So I always go “that’s adult there, because it’s from the eighties”.

‘I’d like to do some sort of art programme.’

Who We Are Now with Izzy & Richard Hammond is available to listen now on Global Player, and all major platforms.