30 Celebrities That Cannot Stand The Royal Family

1. Colin Firth

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Popular actor Colin Firth is amongst many celebrities who cannot stand the royal family, In fact, he quotes voting as one of his favorite things to do, he enjoys exercising his right to elect a leader. And so for him, any kind of unelected body with power is very problematic.

2. George Clooney

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Hollywood American actor George Clooney has openly criticized the British monarchy for the lack of diversity and that it represents. He firmly believes that it upholds a system of white privilege and wealth which doesn't not, and should not represent modern Britain!

3. Russel Brand

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Now Russel Brand is one of the most outspoken and controversial figures, and so it may come as no surprise that he's not been backwards on coming forwards about his disgust of the monarchy. He even wrote a book 'Revolution' where he expressed his hatred for royals who believe they are above other people.

4. Naomi Campbell

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World famous super model Naomi Campbell has also opened up about the fact that she wholeheartedly disagrees with the British monarchy as it stands for its dark colonial past. She believes we need to move on and draw a clean slate from any shameful past of exploitation.

5. Daniel Radcliffe

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Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe claims that he is definitely anti-royalist. But he emphasizes that he is very patriotic and extremely proud to be British. However,  he has expressed beliefs that the monarchy symbolizes 'a lot of what was wrong with the country'.

6. Danny Boyle

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Oscar-winning film creator Danny Boyle revealed his contempt for the crown when he stated that a better and fairer idea would be to have an elected head of state. He believes that people should be able to choose, and he even personally cited JK. Rowling for the job.

7. Honor Blackman

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Honor Blackman rose to fame in the two first seasons of avengers and continues a long and prosperous acting career. In 2014 she was offered the chance of a CBE (Commander of the British Empire) to commend her life of work for the arts which she refused as she was in fact a republican.

8. Eddie Izzard

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Eddie Izzard is a comedian who also takes a strong stance on politics. He has discussed that 'hereditary privilege is crazy to me'. He instead proposes the idea that we should elect the head of the state for them to be in power for five years before the next election.

9. Mark Ruffalo

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American actor Mark Ruffalo is another celebrity who has opened up about not being able to stand the royal family. He believes that the monarchy a show of privilege and elitism which is completely out of touch and should not still be present in modern society.

10. Morrissey

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Morissey has certainly not held back about his opposition to the monarch. He compltely slated the late Queen as 'the ultimate dictator'. He discussed that the crown has no loyalty to the people, despite people having loyalty to the crown. He also strongly disagreed with Prince William and Harry being seen on a hunting trip, which came right after they publicly criticized poaching.

11. Tracy Ullman

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Tracey Ullman was a comedian who made a successful career in the States after being born in the UK. She began The Tracey Ullman Show which ultimately was the beginning of The Simpsons. She proposes that instead of the monarchy as we know it we should have a bicycle royalty system and that they should be allowed to step down if they choose.

12. Jeremy Corbyn

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Jeremy Corbyn was once the leader of the UK Labour Party and he expressed that he wanted Queen Elizabeth to be the last head of state of the monarch. He believed in moving past the monarchy and he made a huge statement when he refused to sing 'God Save the Queen'.

13. Johnny Marr

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Johnny Marr is a singer from The Smiths. He has a problem with the royal family as a whole but he also took a dislike to the late Queen who he expressed showed no displays of empathy and compassion. He was asked if he would ever receive an OBE, to which he replied a vehement no.

14. Mike Leigh

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Mike Leigh is a film maker who is regularly nominated for Oscars, and also another  anti-monarchist. He supports a Republican movement and states that it is completely 'ludicrous' in the 21st century to have a royal family which represent wealth and privilege.

15. Noel Gallagher

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Noel Gallagher from Oasis has been publicly outspoken on many issues. He has a very controversial image and he is regularly speaking out against something. He claimed that the royals are all 'clowns', in his very typical manner of speaking, to convey that he cannot stand the royal family.

16. Phillip Pullman

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Phillip Pullman (famous best selling author) takes an unusual stance on the topic of the royal family and suggests we have a part time monarchy. Yet this is not because he is anti-monarchist but because he thinks that there is huge strain and pressure on the family and a very intruded private life.

17. The Sex Pistols

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The Sex Pistols were a famous  band and famous for their anti-monarchist views. Their ironic single 'God Save the Queen' was advertised by the band during a stunt for Queen Elizabeth II's Silver Jubilee. The band took a boat down the canal called Queen Elizabeth which was full of anti-monarchists.

18. Emma Thompson

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Emma Thompson, famous British actress, has also spoken publicly about her disdain for the royal family and the fact that they represent privilege and wealth. She believes that a monarchy is totally irrelevant to modern society and stands for outdated values and beliefs.

19. John Oliver

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British Comedian John Oliver cannot stand the royal family as he disagrees strongly with the fact that the expenses which are paid using the tax payer's hard earned money is used to fund the extravagance and indulgencies of the royal family's lifestyle.

20. Hugh Grant

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Famous actor Hugh Grant is also amongst the list of celebrities who cannot stand the royal family. He personally called it an 'archaic institution' and expressed his belief that eh finds it completely shocking that it still exists in this day in age and thinks that it should be abolished.

21. Lily Allen

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World famous pop singer Lily Allen has taken a string stand against the monarchy. She argues that the royal family symbolizes and justifies class division and inequality, giving people the idea that some people are born with a higher status and are entitled to be treated better.

22. Stephen Fry

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British Comedian Stephen Fry has used the words 'fossilized institution' in reference to the royal family and the monarchy, to emphasise that its archaic and it should have been abolished many years ago in favor for a more updated and democratic head of state.

23. David Bowie

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David Bowie is a late musician whose music captured the world. David Bowie also called for the monarchy to be abolished and he argues that it no longer had any relevance to today's world which is the view that many anti-monarchists also strongly believe.

24. Tim Roth

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Tim Roth (actor) referred to the royal family and the monarchy as a 'self serving' institution. He believes that the monarchy creates wealth and elitism for the royals, whilst serving no purpose for the people but actively taking from the people to serve their own interests.

25. Sinead O'Connor

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Irish musician Sinead O'Connor has spoken out against the monarchy and stands as a republican. She believes that the whole idea of having a royal family is a completely outdated system which reproduces more and more inequality and the idea that inequality is okay.

26. Adele

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Global singer songwriter Adele holds a similar view when it comes tot he royal family. She also believes that the royal family perpetuates inequality and actually glorifies it - the idea that the royals are born with a right to rule and a right to have privilege like nobody else.

27. Helena Bonham Carter

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Successful actress Helen Bonham Carter cannot stand the royal family. She believes that the royal family creates division. The monarchy, which many people look up to, replicates division and covers up the fact that division should not be tolerated any longer in a modern society.

28. Tim Minchin

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Tim Minchin is an Australian comedian with some strong opinions of many societal matters, including his hatred of the monarchy as an institution. He believes that it is totally outdated and that it represents a system that should no longer be in place.

29. Ricky Gervais

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Witty comedian Ricky Gervais is also super  critical of the monarchy. Whilst it's not the royal family as individual which he disagrees with, he cannot support the monarchy as an institution. He believes in a more republican approach for Britain, rather than continue with the monarchy.

30. Gary Lineker

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Former footballer and current sports commentator Gary Lineker takes the stance against the crown for being  and irrelevant institution. He claims that it no longer has any relevance or place in a modern society, especially as it goes against a lot of the modern values we try to incorporate.

31. Stacey Solomon

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UK TV personality is also definitely not a royalist, despite being British. Stacey, who first appeared on talent show X Factor, has said she doesn't really 'get' why everyone is obsessed with the royal family, and that anyone could 'work hard' if they were given lots of money and houses to do so!

32. Celebrities Who Turned Down Honors From The Royals, Too.... Michael Sheen

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Actor Michael Sheen received an OBE from the late Queen Elizabeth II a few years ago, for services to drama, and while the Welsh actor did accept the award at the time, he went and handed it back! He had given a lecture on the history of Wales and England and decided that it wasn't right to keep the honor.

33. John Lennon

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Legendary musician and Beatles singer John Lennon was presented with an MBE (Member of the British Empire) along with the other members of the band, but he gave it back a few years later. He revealed that he'd given it back as a "protest" against Britain's involvement in "the Nigeria-Biafra thing".

34. George Harrison

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And John Lennon's bandmate, George Harrison, was presented with the honor of becoming an Officer of the British Empire (OBE) but he actually rejected it in the first place - and this came a few years after his band mate, Paul McCartney, was knighted.

35. Paul Weller

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Musician Paul Weller, member of the band Jam, was another musician who was presented with a CBE (Commander of the British Empire) honor - but he rejected it. It was a spokesperson who revealed the news on his behalf, saying it he was "flattered" but it "wasn't really for him".

36. John Cleese

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Legendary British comic actor was definitely the type of person to be presented with a royal honor, after a lifetime of service to the showbiz industry! But John Cleese declined both a Commander of the British Empire award and a life peerage position in the late 90s.

37. Ken Loach

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British film director and screenwriter Ken Loach rejected an Order of the British Empire (OBE) when it was presented to him, saying that the people who accepted awards from the royals was the type of "club" he didn't want to join because of the "villains who've got it".

38. Dawn French

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Dawn French, a beloved British TV comic and actress, was offered a Damehood for her work, but she ended up turning down the OBE. She said that it didn't feel right because she was just having fun with her job and it felt weird to be getting a pat on the back for that!

39. Jennifer Saunders

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Jennifer Saunders is the only part of the comedy due with Dawn French - also known as French and Saunders - and likewise she was offered an OBE damehood, too. She turned it down for the same reasons, with her and French thinking it would be "fake" to accept one alongside people who'd devoted their lives to good causes.

40. Alan Rickman

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Alan Rickman deserved all the awards in the world not least for his role as Snape in Harry Potter, but for his life-spanning career in acting. Rickman was presented with a CBE by the late queen, but he chose to turn it down - and he never actually revealed the reason why.

41. John Lydon

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To say that John Lydon of the Sex Pistols was presented with an award from the royals has to be some sort of bad joke! But it's true. We've already spoken about how Lydon and the rest of his band were completely anti-monarchy, so when he was offered an award, he of course turned it down.

42. Roald Dahl

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Famous writer behind Matila, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and The Witches - to name a few! - turned down an award from the royal family, but for an entirely different reason. He turned down an OBE (Officer of the British Empire) because he was after a knighthood instead!

43. Vanessa Redgrave

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Famous actress Vanessa Redgrave is a bit of a funny one when it comes to her opinion on awards - it seems she keeps changing her mind about them! She was originally offered an CBE, which she accepted, but then she later turned down a damehood... only to then accept a DBE later on.

44. C. S. Lewis

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Famous author and the mind behind the Chronicles of Narnia, C.S. Lewis was presented with an award - a CBE, in fact - by the royal family and the Prime Minster, but he declined it - his reasons being his religion, and his views that his religion might strengthen "anti-Leftist propaganda" movements.

45. Alan Cumming

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Actor Alan Cumming became an OBE when he accepted the award from Princess Anne - but he later then gave it back! The award was part of the late Queen Elizabeth's birthday honor list, but the actor returned it because of "toxicity" of the royal empire and its negative involvement with indigenous people.

46. David Bowie

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We already mentioned singer and actor David Bowie was never a fan of the monarchy - and it goes to show, because he rejected his knighthood offer! Not only that, but another award, the Commander of the British Empire. Bowie said that he didn't even know what it would be for, and didn't want to accept it!

47. Nigella Lawson

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Well-known British food writer and chef Nigella Lawson has done a huge amount throughout her successful career, including books and TV programs, but when she was offered an OBE, she turned it down, saying that she's only doing something she loves and "not saving lives".

48. Stephen Hawking

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If there's anyone that deserved all the awards for life-changing work, it was Stephen Hawking, but when the royal family offered him a knighthood for his services, he apparently turned it down, and it's alleged he did so because of lack of government funding for the sciences.

49. Jim Broadbent

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Jim Broadbent is a British actor known for a lifelong career in film and theater - and as Slughorn is you're a Harry Potter fan - but when he was offered an OBE, he turned it down because he didn't think actors should be associated with all of that - and that the awards should go to people who really help others!

50. Jon Snow

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No, not that Jon Snow! The one we're talking about actually knows something - and apparently knows enough to reject an honor from the royals. Jon was a famous journalist and news presenter before he recently retired, but he didn't retire before rejecting an OBE from the royals!