Comedian Graham Linehan has returned to X after what many see as a heavy-handed arrest by five armed officers at Heathrow over posts about a trans-identified male in a female-only space.
The Father Ted co-creator, still under investigation and due to answer bail later this month, said his “punch” remark was a joke highlighting women’s safety concerns, not a call to violence. Upon his return to X, he said: “Thanks to my solicitors and the @SpeechUnion for getting my absurd bail conditions dropped!”
The Free Speech Union (FSU) is backing Linehan’s lawsuit against the Metropolitan Police for wrongful arrest, false imprisonment, and breaches of free speech. FSU Director Lord Young of Acton said police had “no right” to impose a gag order as a bail condition, which was dropped after legal pressure.
Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley claimed officers had “no choice,” but Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said five officers for a tweet showed Labour’s “thought-policing” priorities. Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp called the arrest “an absurd infringement of free speech.”
Health Secretary Wes Streeting admitted ministers may have burdened police with laws on online speech, distracting them from tackling serious crime.
