Ricky Gervais stunned by Twitter arrests

Comic Ricky Gervais is adamant Twitter.com users should not be prosecuted over messages they post on the social networking site.

The Office creator is a big fan of tweeting but has come under fire on several occasions for his updates, and once had to apologise for using the word 'mong', an out-of-date term which is often associated with sufferers of Down Syndrome.

There has been a series of arrests stemming from tweets, but Gervais insists posting moronic messages on a website should not be illegal.

He says, "I'm not concerned with what I say. I'm going to say what I think. It's a bit weird you can be prosecuted for saying what you think, but you have to take every case on its own merits.

"Offence is relative. Offence isn't about right or wrong, it's about feelings. So I think it's difficult to say someone is objectively wrong.

"I don't think being an idiot is against the law. That's what it comes down to. Some people believe in ghosts and God, which I find very strange, but I don't think they should be arrested."