Is Stephen Fry vegan? British broadcaster calls for Buckingham Palace King’s Guard to stop using real fur in bearskin caps

British comedian and presenter Stephen Fry calls for Buckingham Palace to stop using real bear fur for their King's Guard's bearskin caps. In a video posted on January 10, 2024, by PETA, Stephen Fry is heard narrating how bears are inhumanely killed for their fur and urges the Ministry of Defence to go "fur-free" and use faux bear fur.

Disclaimer: The following video depicts scenes of animal disembowelment. Viewer's discretion is advised.

Stephen Fry, a self-proclaimed vegetarian since 2017, is an avid promoter of a plant-based lifestyle. In 2020, he encouraged his followers to quit meat and eat veggies on National Vegetarian Week.

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Stephen Fry has been a vegetarian since 2017

According to some of his tweets, Stephen Fry switched from non-vegetarian to vegetarian sometime in 2017, tweeting he had developed a "virtual addiction" to kimchi since "becoming vegetarian."

However, Stephen Fry is not a vegan due to his fondness for cheese and eggs.

Stephen Fry's comments about veganism on X (Image via @JGaleJudith/X)

In 2020, Stephen Fry embraced his love for oat milk, tweeting:

One X user responded by saying, "Oat milk isn’t milk," Fry replied,

"And peanut butter isn’t butter, quince cheese isn’t cheese, cream of coconut isn’t cream…try as dairy farmers might, history and the nature of language development will decide.”

Stephen Fry was also the ambassador for National Vegetarian Week's campaign “Eat to Beat Climate Change” in 2020, where he motivated his followers to try "classic recipes with a veggie twist," which included Tofu Fish N Chips, Tofu Rogan Josh and Bangers & Mash.

According to Cauldron Foods, Stephen Fry's comments about the campaign were,

“I think it’s fair to say that there’s never been a better time to try cutting out meat and living a plant-based life. I’ve found it good for health and energy, and if we all joined in … well, wouldn’t the planet be pleased!”

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"Tradition is never an excuse for cruelty": Stephen Fry calls for the Ministry of Defence to switch to faux fur

Narrating the video for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), Stephen Fry criticized how black bears are "mercilessly killed by trophy hunters" for their fur "to make the caps worn by the King's Guard" that serves "no military purpose."

Fry says in the video,

"Tradition is never an excuse for cruelty, which is why I'm joining the call for the Ministry of Defence to stop using the fur of slaughtered wildlife and make the switch to humane faux fur for the King's Guard's caps."

According to the video, an undercover patron captured footage of hunters luring in black bears with bagels, biscuits, and oil and shooting them with crossbow bolts once they were close enough. Most bears do not die instantly but rather slowly in pain due to infection and blood loss. The bears are then disemboweled, and their pelts are sold for profit.

In the video, Fry says it takes at least one bear to "provide enough fur for each cap." He continues,

"By continuing to purchase caps made of black bear fur, the UK government drives demand for pelts and effectively incentivises hunters. Britain has always prided itself on being sporting, but these bears - lured with cookies to the hunters' hiding place - stand no chance of survival."

Fry offered an alternative in the form of faux bear fur that "meets all the criteria outlined by the Ministry of Defence" and performed "better" than bear skin to stop the use of "the fur of slaughtered wildlife."

As per BBC, Kate Werner, senior campaign manager at PETA UK, said PETA would share this video with King Charles as the king is a keen environmentalist. She continued,

"The UK government is sponsoring bait-and-kill sport hunting of mothers and other bears. It's time to modernise this iconic symbol of Britain by switching to a fabulous faux fur that has been tested specifically to ensure its suitability for use by the King's Guard."

The Daily Mirror reported that a Ministry of Defence spokeswoman claimed their pelts are from authorized hunts, saying,

"Bears are not hunted to order for the Ministry of Defence and bear pelts used are a product of legal and licensed hunts. To date and to the department's knowledge, an alternative has yet to meet the standards required to provide an effective replacement for the bearskin ceremonial caps."

The King's Guard's hats are made out of real black bear fur (Image via Getty Images)

The tall black bearskin hats are a common sight around Buckingham Palace, worn by the King's Guard during ceremonial military events such as the "Changing of the Guard," and is a tradition carried on for the past 200 years.