Darth Vader’s theme blares from a speaker. A man in a ridiculous hat bellows ‘Stop Brexit!’ through a megaphone. Then, the Benny Hill theme song kicks in, and the sound echoes across Parliament Square. Bewildered tourists snap photos. MPs, aides and political journalists tut, shake their heads or shout something unrepeatable towards the traffic island where the noise is coming from. When the Tories were in power, this was a near-daily soundtrack in London’s Westminster (and largely still is now), courtesy of Steve Bray, perhaps Britain’s most persistent political pest.
Bray is incredibly annoying. I doubt you’ll find many who would dispute that. A former coin dealer, he was one of a select group of absurd Remainer activists who popped up after Brexit, insisting the referendum was questionable and must be overturned. His activism, such as it is, has constituted him shouting slogans and blaring music at politicians and news crews in SW1.
But should being annoying be a crime? Thankfully, last week, a court ruled that it isn’t – with Bray cleared of protest-related charges. This decision isn’t only a relief for Bray. The rest of us should cheer it, too.
Bray was charged in March last year for failing to comply with a police demand that he stop playing music in Parliament Square. Bray, quite rightly, denied the charge and insisted that playing music was part of his ‘fundamental right to protest’.
The court agreed. Bray hadn’t broken any laws, just a few eardrums. Judge Anthony Woodcock, who handed down the decision in Westminster Magistrates’ Court, said: ‘Lampooning the government through satire is a long tradition in this country.’ Most people would think it a stretch to describe Bray’s tired protests as ‘satire’, but no one should dispute the spirit of the decision.
Look, I get it. Bray is seriously irritating. When I worked in Westminster, I lost count of the days I could overhear him foghorning his love of the EU and his hatred of the Tories. The fact that Bray’s protests dragged on for years didn’t make his braying much easier to tolerate.
But tolerate it we should. After all, what’s the point of protesting if no one notices? A silent protest isn’t a protest – it’s a garden party no one’s invited to. It shouldn’t matter if you agree with Bray. What matters is that, in a free society, you shouldn’t be arrested for being heard.
We don’t want the state to decide how much protest is too much, or let politicians dictate when opposition becomes too noisy. That would render all protest polite, well-mannered and boring.
Our hard-won right to kick up a fuss in public is far too restricted as it is. Under the Public Order Act, police can shut down a protest if it causes ‘serious unease, alarm or distress’. That’s vibes-based authoritarianism.
The crime of ‘suspicion of conspiracy to commit a public nuisance’ is another weapon in the state’s arsenal. We saw this in action in 2023, during the coronation of King Charles. Anti-monarchy protesters were detained before they could even unpack their placards, over fears they might cause disruption.
It’s easy to defend noisy protests when you agree with the cause. Tory MPs had every right to join farmers blaring out ‘Baby Shark’ as tractors blocked roads in the capital in November. But too many would draw the line at the EU-flag waving Bray as he blasts out the Benny Hill theme.
You don’t need to like Steve Bray, but you should be glad he has won his case. Because if his protests can be silenced for being annoying, then yours can be silenced, too. If we start trimming civil liberties every time someone is too loud, too irritating or too persistent, then soon we won’t have many left.
Aaron Newbury is a former Conservative Party adviser.
