London — So, the Usual Suspects are at it again: weeping and gnashing their teeth over Brexit. This time, it's the thespians, those darlings of the Guardian-reading elite, moaning about how much harder it is to swan around Europe doing 'art' now that we've actually taken back control of our borders. Cry me a river, drama queens.

Apparently, having to fill out a few extra forms and maybe not being able to claim your free holiday as a 'business trip' is a CAT-AS-TROPHE. The horror! The sheer, unadulterated unfairness of it all! Someone get these poor dears a fainting couch and a strong cup of chamomile tea.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS), bless their number-crunching hearts, has confirmed that performing arts exports to the EU are down. Boo-freaking-hoo. But guess what else? Exports to non-EU countries are UP. Maybe, just maybe, there's a whole wide world out there beyond the confines of the Brussels bureaucracy.

These 'actors,' bless their hearts, are now limited to 90 days of work in the EU every 180 days. Oh noes! No more 6-month stints in Tuscan villas pretending to be impoverished artists while filming car commercials for German multinational corporations. I weep for their suffering. Really.

And Equity, the performers' union, is clutching its pearls because some of its members are getting taxed on their 'accommodation costs.' Shocking! Apparently, the concept of paying taxes on benefits in kind is a novel one for these enlightened souls. Who knew? I guess 'socialism for me, capitalism for thee' is still the prevailing ethos among the glitterati.

The National Theatre, those paragons of virtue and fiscal responsibility (cough, cough), have suspended their European tours. Probably because it's harder to get EU subsidies now that we're not footing the bill. Funny how that works.

White Horse Theatre, some outfit that does English-language plays for European schoolchildren, is worried about its future. Maybe they should try putting on a production of '1984' to explain the joys of being ruled by an unelected cabal of bureaucrats. That’ll sell tickets.

Look, nobody is saying that Brexit hasn't created some challenges. But the sheer, unadulterated hysteria from the artistic community is beyond parody. Maybe instead of whining about visa requirements, they could try creating something original, something that doesn't rely on taxpayer-funded handouts and endless trips to the EU gravy train.