"He then came on as the third-last act and said 'So you know how gay people can make jokes about being gay, and black people can make jokes about being black, well I can make jokes about rape' implying it's because he looks like a rapist." Devlin said she then decided to slide off her seat under the table as a silent protest. "He started saying to me 'What's your problem? Seriously, what's this girl's problem? Oh wait, you probably shouldn't ask someone whose just called out a rape joke what their problem is'." "He tried to go on with the show but it had clearly very much shaken him," she said. "Finally he gave up and decided to walk off and said 'Good on you for taking a stand, but you're a piece of sh*t and I hope you die'."

The show, which was not officially a part of the official festival program but featured MICF acts, took place at comedy venue Crab Lab. Devlin said she would like an apology from Badran, but also said the issue was a much bigger than just his performance. "This is not going to be the only rape joke at the comedy festival this year," she said. "No one at the venue did anything about his behaviour. Not the MC, not the staff." Devlin's stand was supported by many on Twitter.

Defenders of Badran on social media have said the joke is not about rape but about stereotypes. This week Comedy Festival director Susan Provan said organisers did not support racist or misogynistic material. "We would never censor anyone but usually when inexperienced comedians attempt big topics, they tend to fall flat. People will vote with their feet."