From Playbill:

A lyric has been changed in the Broadway, London, Las Vegas and touring productions of the Tony-winning musical Monty Python’s Spamalot.

The Associated Press reports that a reference to the much-in-the-news Britney Spears has been removed from the song "Diva’s Lament," which is performed by the Lady of the Lake.

About the change, Spamalot co-creator Eric Idle had this to say to AP via e-mail: "Because we don’t laugh at sad people. Mike Nichols (the show’s director) requested it and he’s right. We changed the lyrics in London, on tour, on Broadway and in Las Vegas. We think that it’s now too sad. Britney Spears is being tortured to death and we don’t want to be on that side."

The original lyric stated: "I am sick of my career/ Always stuck in second gear/ Up to here with frustration and with fears/ I’ve no Grammy no rewards/ I’ve no Tony Awards/ I’m constantly replaced by Britney Spears/ Britney Spears!" The revised lyric follows: "My love life is a mess/ I’ve got constant PMS/ My career is about as hot as ice/ They hate me there backstage/ They say I’m too old for my age/ They’re trying to replace me with Posh Spice/ With Posh Spice!"

Heather asks "is it now officially too sad to make fun of Brittney Spears?"

Well, first of all, let me say that the newer lyrics are better in my opinion.

Secondly, and speaking as no stranger to making fun of Britney Spears, I think it’s kind of nice that we, as a society, lay off a little.  Nobody enjoys razzing pop culture more than me, especially when the object truly invites it, but I think in Britney’s case, there may be some real issues there.  As grownups ay, "It’s always funny until someone gets hurt".