On this day: Mel Gibson’s ‘antisemitic’ rant - The Jewish Chronicle

Mel Gibson was the toast of Hollywood – had been for years – when he was stopped by a police officer in Malibu, California. He was arrested for drunk driving and launched into an attack on the officer - who was Jewish.

He allegedly shouted: "F***king Jews…the Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world".

What followed was a media circus, as reports of the comments appeared on gossip site TMZ. The comments also came two years after the release of The Passion, a film about the life of Jesus directed by Gibson, which came under fire for suggesting that Jews were responsible for the crucifixion.

Before that film, Gibosn had been known for his strident and conservative views; the product perhaps of his father, a traditionalist Catholic who once told the New York Times that the Holocaust had not occurred.