“When the economy dries up, then they turn on the usual scapegoat: the usual suspect – the Jew.
“There is one school of thought that says it’s because of Israeli policies in the West Bank – it isn’t. There’s been antisemitism for the past 4,000 years.”
Ms Lipman, one of the country’s most popular performers, said she had been discussing her concerns with friends and family for “a long time”.
“My kids are very bored with me,” she said. “But it is only in the last few months that they have to begun to say: ‘Mum, you may have something’.”
She said the dramatic increase in antisemitism, against a backdrop of the Jewish community’s contribution to Britain, had left her “very depressed”.
Last year Ms Lipman said she would not vote for Labour in the general election because of Ed Miliband’s stance on Israel.
