Irish police drop blasphemy investigation of noted comedian Stephen Fry

The Independent (Ireland) (Cathal McMahon) reports:

Gardaí have decided not to proceed with a blasphemy investigation against Stephen Fry after they failed to find a large group of people outraged by comments he made on an RTÉ show….

A well-placed source said: "This man [who filed the complaint] was simply a witness and not an injured party [presumably because he said that he himself was not offended by Fry's comments—EV]. Gardaí were unable to find a substantial number of outraged people.

"For this reason the investigation has been concluded." …

Today Health Minister Simon Harris said a referendum should be held to change the [Irish] constitution's stance of blasphemy.

"It's silly. It's a bit embarrassing. It needs to be changed. I'm very pleased that the Government wishes to see a referendum in relation to this issue. It obviously does require constitutional change," he said.

For more on the investigation, on Fry's remarks and on Irish blasphemy law, see this post.