Ricky Gervais has set tongues wagging again after he made a controversial joke about illegal immigrants in his Netflix special.
The star, in his new Netflix show Armageddon, targeted cancel culture and those who are so-called “woke”.
The comedian began the joke by saying: "I am trying to be more woke. For example, I love illegal immigrants. Sue me.
“Sometimes I just go down to Dover and I see a f***ing dinghy with 60 of them on and I go, ‘Come on, welcome! Women and children first. Oh, there are no women — just you lads, is it?’
Ricky Gervais has landed himself in hot water with his controversial comedy
PA/Netflix
“If there’s no boat, I’m absolutely gutted. I just sort of wander into town and stand by the traffic lights, and wait for a big lorry to pull up.
“I look underneath, and there’s a lad clutching onto it, and I go: ‘Where are you headed?’ And he says: ‘Gary Lineker’s house'.”
The star has been slammed by critics for his Christmas Day special and a reviewer at the Independent labelled it "lazy comedy."
Speaking to GBNews Comedian Diane Spencer disagreed and said that he should be able to "do whatever jokes he likes".
Comedian Diane Spencer has defended the star
GBNews
She said: " Humor is always dependent on the person who creates it and the person who listens to it. What vibes with them and what doesn't.
"That article by The Independent was very snotty and you know what? Gervais is popular, so he is a target. He's not writing it for these snotty reviewers who were never going to buy a ticket. They were never going to go see him.
"I think it's really sad that there's a group of people out there who are saying, no, you can't enjoy, you can't enjoy your comedy. It's inappropriate."
She later added: "I do not think in any way, shape or form that Ricky Gervais is racist or bigoted or anti-immigrant.
He has been slammed for his Christmas special
PA
"I think him poking fun at the situation is kind of a crucial thing to do as a comedian to test the waters."
The comedian was criticised for the show before it was even released do to his comments about terminally ill children.
He responded by saying: "I'm literally saying in the joke that I don’t do that. But people have a reaction.
"They don't analyse it. They feel something – that's what offence is. It's a feeling. That's why 'I'm offended' is quite meaningless. What do you want me to change?"
Gervais went on to say that he believes "99 per cent" of the outrage is "faux offence".
He added: "They're not really offended. They just want to be heard. "Of all the millions of people that watched it and loved it, only a few don't like it."