British comedian and actor Stephen Fry dismissed the idea of god, describing the mythical creator as an “utter maniac” and “totally selfish” in an interview for Ireland’s RTE.

When asked by The Meaning of Life host Guy Byrne what he would do if he came face-to-face with God at the Pearly Gates, he replied “How dare you?”.

The famed atheist then went on a tirade about the idea of God, and how any such all-powerful being could have designed a world with so much pain and suffering:

“I’ll say: bone cancer in children, what’s that about? How dare you how dare you create a world where there is such misery that’s not our fault? It’s utterly, utterly evil.

“Why should I respect a capricious, mean-minded, stupid god who creates a world which is so full of injustice and pain?

“The god who created this universe, if he created this universe, is quite clearly a maniac, an utter maniac, totally selfish. We have to spend our lives on our knees thanking him. What kind of god would do that?

“Yes the world is very splendid, but it also has in it insects whose whole life cycle is to burrow into the eyes of children and make them blind.”

A stunned Byrne, 80, then asked the QI presenter if he thought he would get into heaven at all after his comments, to which Fry replied “I wouldn’t want to”.