British Conservative Party leader says BBC 'should not show' Kneecap at Glastonbury
In a social media post on X, which was accompanied by an article from The Times that claimed the BBC had not banned the group, Ms Badenoch wrote: "The BBC should not be showing Kneecap propaganda.
"One Kneecap band member is currently on bail, charged under the Terrorism Act.
"As a publicly funded platform, the BBC should not be rewarding extremism."
On Wednesday, Mr Ó hAnnaidh was accompanied to Westminster Magistrates' Court by his two other band members, JJ Ó Dochartaigh, whose stage name is DJ Próvaí, and Naoise Ó Cairealláin, whose stage name is Móglaí Bap.
Mr Ó hAnnaidh is alleged to have displayed a flag in support of Hezbollah at a gig at the O2 Forum in Kentish Town in north London on 21 November last year. He was released on unconditional bail until his next hearing at the same court on 20 August.
Following the hearing, the rapper said: "For anybody going to Glastonbury, you can see us there at 4pm on the Saturday.
"If you can't be there we'll be on the BBC, if anybody watches the BBC. We'll be at Wembley in September."
In November, Kneecap won its discrimination case over a decision made by Ms Badenoch to refuse them funding.
A BBC spokesperson said: "As the broadcast partner, the BBC will be bringing audiences extensive music coverage from Glastonbury, with artists booked by the festival organisers.
"Whilst the BBC doesn't ban artists, our plans will ensure that our programming will meet our editorial guidelines. Decisions about our output will be made in the lead up to the festival."
During their sold-out gig at Fairview Park in Dublin on Thursday, DJ Próvaí thanked fans who turned out to support them during their bandmate's court case.
Formed in 2017, the Belfast trio are known for their provocative lyrics in both Irish and English.
Their best-known tracks include Get Your Brits Out, Better Way To Live, featuring Grian Chatten from Fontaines DC, and 3Cag.
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Irish Times
2 hours ago
- Irish Times
The moment Jerome Powell stood up to Donald Trump
Nobody will ever accuse president Donald Trump of rank sentimentality. Legions of wrestling fans across the United States mourned on Thursday morning the sudden death of Hulk Hogan , the original wrestling star who last July literally gave the shirt off his back to Trump during a memorable, vein-popping cameo at the Republican convention. But as ever, the national news cycle revolving around the president on Thursday was typically furious and strange. In Tallahassee, Florida, the US deputy attorney general, Todd Blanche, met Ghislaine Maxwell , the English socialite currently serving 20 years for her sex-trafficking crimes and procuring minors for Jeffrey Epstein . The purpose and details of the meeting, which lasted several hours, remain obscure. Trump took to his social media account to pay brief but heartfelt tribute to 'the Hulkster', whom he described as 'MAGA all the way'. Then, a few hours later, he appeared in a white construction-site hard hat in the company of Jerome Powell, the chairman of the Federal Reserve and of late the subject of choice Trumpian smackdowns, such as 'numbskull', 'moron' and 'very dumb'. The pair made unlikely bedfellows for a photo opportunity that quickly turned surreal. The headgear was occasioned by the tour of the Federal Reserve Building, which is undergoing a complete interior and exterior construction overhaul to the eye-watering tune of $2.7 billion. READ MORE Accompanying them was Tim Scott, the South Carolina senator who has been leading the White House argument that the renovation costs are crazily high and merit investigation. 'One of the reasons we wanted to see it,' Scott explained for the cameras – 'was the expenses overrun'. For some unknown and distracting reason, Scott himself was not wearing a white hard hat. Maybe he forsook that safety precaution in a valiant attempt to keep the costs down. But the moment took a theatrical turn when president Trump, producing with a flourish a sheet of paper from his breast pocket, said: 'So we are taking a look. It looks like it's about 3.1 billion. It went up a little bit.' Powell shook his head at this. 'Or a lot.' Trump continued. 'So, the $2.7 is now $3.1.' At this point, Powell's patience broke. 'I'm not aware of that, Mr president. I haven't heard that from anybody at the Fed.' 'It just came out,' president Trump replied, and handed him the paper. Federal Reserve chairs seldom make it to the top because of their charisma or magnetism. Their job demands the opposite. But this was Powell's moment, whether he wished for it or not. He looked perplexed as he read the paper before he saw what he was being presented with. 'It came from the Martin renovation. You just added in a third building, is what that is,' he said, handing his president the paper. 'It's a building that's being built,' Trump said. 'No. It was built five years ago.' The exchange wasn't disrespectful to the office of the presidency on Powell's part, nor withering. But the refusal to buckle made Scott's servility all the more vivid in the moment. It was a startling reminder of how few people in Donald Trump's orbit dare to contradict him. Opinion is split as to whether Powell, who was appointed by Donald Trump in 2017, will go down as a good Federal Reserve boss. He was heavily criticised in some quarters for being overly complacent during the post-pandemic inflationary acceleration. And there may be legitimate argument in Trump's argument that now, with the housing market in the United States dysfunctional, is the time to lower interest rates. But Powell's backbone and his belief that the Federal Reserve must remain independent to political pressure withstood this test. At times, Powell resembled a man sombrely considering the life choices that brought him to this moment: a presidential admonishment with both men dressed in the absurd headgear, like Lego figures brought to life. But he didn't buckle and the bizarre encounter closed with Trump jocularly slapping Powell on the back as he answered a reporter's question of what he would like to see happen. 'Well, I'd love him to lower interest rates. Other than that, what can I tell you?' Friends again? Who knew. But the conversation illustrates the unyielding strangeness of the atmosphere of the political summer in Washington. On Wednesday, House speaker Mike Johnson sent the representatives home for an extra week of recess. Republican senators were unhappy that their colleagues had not stuck around to legislate a little more. The general assumption was that Johnson broke early to avoid a vote, prompted by representative Thomas Massie's discharge petition, to release the Epstein files. Donald Trump presents Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell with what Mr Trump called a list of cost overruns for the Federal Reserve's $2.5 billion headquarters renovation project during a tour with Republican senator Tim Scott in Washington, DC. Photograph:'I've got to believe that there has to be more to it, because that almost seems to suggest if they go away for four or five – or how many weeks they're going to go away – that that problem is going to go away,' senator Thom Tillis, the North Carolina Republican, told reporters on Capitol Hill. 'Do you guys really think you're going to take your eyes off this issue come Labor Day? The answer is 'no'. So, I think it's a false premise assuming if they just walk away and avoid this vote, that it's not going to continue to be an issue.' A Fox News poll issued on Wednesday evening found that just 13 per cent of voters believed that the White House has been fully transparent with information related to the Epstein case, with 60 per cent Republicans in that category. And only 19 per cent stated that they have not been following the story at all. Alternatively, it is on the radar of 80 per cent of respondents. That statistic alone may explain why alternative scandal pushed by the White House this week – with Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence, releasing new documents that purport to link former president Barack Obama to what has been presented as a hoax claim of Russian influence during the 2016 election won by Trump – has yet to gain traction. It's the old principle of maximum headroom. There are simply too many lurid plates spinning in the air above the White House for even the most willing Maga loyalists to keep their eyes and minds on. Sean Hannity, whose influential evening show on Fox is pro-Trumpian agit-prop, did his best to stoke enthusiasm on Wednesday night, during an hour in which the Epstein story did not feature at all. RussiaGate, Hannity assured his viewers, is 'a very real scandal surrounding a very real hoax that makes Watergate, frankly, look like a walk in the park'. It was an unfortunate comparison given that Watergate's denouement featured the resignation of a sitting president. But he nudged his viewership towards considering the gravity of this new set of documents released by the White House. 'Trump-Russia collusion was a fantasy, a complete lie, phoney, false conspiracy theory fed to Democrats and perpetuated by the state-run legacy media mob by the most corrupt administration in modern history. 'Now confirmation from the director of national intelligence that nearly a decade ago, the Obama White House reportedly used the full force of your federal government to delegitimatise the results of the 2016 election, malign the then president-elect Donald Trump before he even took office. 'And it was all based on lies cobbled together with an actual Russian disinformation dirty dossier bought and paid for by Donald Trump's opponent, Hillary Clinton.' It could be that the idea of a prosecution against Obama is stretching the credulity of even the most devout believers in the Maga doctrine of deep-state conspiracies. Their reluctance to be distracted from the Epstein files is bordering on stubborn. Another Republican senator, Eric Schmitt, had this to say about the staying power of the issue. 'I think people are kind of curious and want more information, whether it's potentially testimony or the release of credible information. A lot of people support that. 'It also probably speaks to a larger issue: People feel like the government has lied to them for so long on certain things. People would like to land on the side of more transparency.' The failure to disclose the content of the Epstein files, as repeatedly promised by key Trump administration officials, represents a breach of that promised transparency to the Maga base. Meanwhile, the questions go on. On Thursday, chief among those was why the department of justice felt the need to send an official as senior as Todd Blanche, who was Donald Trump's personal attorney during his Manhattan 'hush money' trial last year, to interview Ghislaine Maxwell, who is clearly hoping to strike some sort of plea deal. 'The Department of Justice will share additional information about what we learned at the appropriate time,' Blanche wrote in a statement before confirming that another meeting would take place on Friday. It is unlikely that the intrigue and public fascination with the Epstein issue will disappear over the remainder of the summer. The scandal has taken on a momentum of its own. As Hulk Hogan used to ask in more innocent times: 'Whatcha gonna do when Hulk-a-mania runs wild on you?' For Donald Trump, the answer is to pull on a hard hat and explain nothing.
The Irish Sun
2 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
‘Next thing a cop car comes' – Red-faced Irish music icon reveals mortifying brush with law on way to history-making gig
SUPERSTAR singer Mary Black feared that she would be arrested when stopped by gardai for leaving a petrol station without paying for fuel. The No Frontiers icon had been keeping her head down to hide from crowds in 6 Mary Black revealed an embarrassing brush with the law Credit: Paul Bergen/Redferns 6 The singer feared she'd be arrested for leaving a petrol station without paying for fuel Credit: Independent NewsBut instead of avoiding recognition, red-faced Black ended up with a police escort to Semple Stadium after paying the bill. She told The Irish Sun's 'You know the people were all over the streets, and I had to keep my head down because everyone was looking at me, and he was in an old banjaxed car. 'He filled up with petrol while he was there, and I got whatever I needed. Read more in Showbiz Listen to Fields Of Dreams on 'He got his cigarettes and got back in the car, and we're driving back up and going slow because people were everywhere. The next thing, a cop car comes. 'What the hell's going on? He stops us. In our haste to get back into the car and back to the gig, we forgot to pay for the petrol. Holy God!' Black was convinced she would be arrested and miss the gig, which also featured Van Morrison, in the first of five events in the Co Tipperary town which would go down in Irish Did the Most read in the Irish Sun She told our podcast, right: 'He knew me the minute they looked into the car. He knew who I was, and I said: 'Oh, my God, I can't believe it'. 'He said, 'Come on, Mary, I'll drive you up to the stadium'. GARDA ESCORT 'Pat paid for the petrol, and he brought us right in, so we didn't have to go through all the crowds. There was a kind of escort, and everyone had to move over.' Black was never one who seemed to enjoy the major star treatment, unlike Van — whose unwillingness to share his space with fellow artists opened him up to criticism. Tom Dunne was there with his band Something Happens, who weren't allowed near the Days Like This crooner at breakfast time. 'STAR QUALITY' Tom said: 'I think he got the backstage closed down when he went into it. We all had to stay in our dressing rooms. We were all staying in the same hotel. We saw him coming down for breakfast. 'I felt he wanted to emanate that star quality. He wanted everyone to know there's a star in the building.' But the Saw Doctors were having none of it. The Galway band became legends at the Tipperary event, and found time for some fun off-stage. 'COULDN'T HELP THEMSELVES' Tom said: 'Van Morrison was a guy you didn't walk up to. 'We had the backstage area, and then we had a tunnel going out to the pitch, and he insisted every time that the tunnel would be cleared, and that absolutely no one would be in the tunnel, and of course, the Saw Doctors couldn't help themselves. 'They decided to disturb it, so they jumped out in front of them, and that didn't go down too well.' 'What the hell's going on? He stops us. In our haste to get back into the car and back to the gig, we forgot to pay for the petrol. Holy God!' Mary Black Episode Six of Fields of Dreams tells the inside story of the Trip to Tipp, the event which made a summer festival a must-have event and changed the rules forever. MADE IT HAPPEN Local TD Michael Lowry was the man who made the event happen, in order to pay off stadium debt racked up for the 1984 centenary All-Ireland final. It was a chance for up to 90,000 mainly young people to get away and let loose for a weekend before it moved to Cork's Pairc Ui Chaoimh in 1995 and then eventually wound up. By 1993, though, it was being billed as bigger than Glastonbury — attracting the same headliners as the English event. Among them were Rage Against the Machine, and The Stunning's Steve Wall — who ended up headlining in 1992 when Bryan Adams asked to leave early — was blown away, especially by frontman Zack de la Rocha. 'KIDS WERE IN A FRENZY' He explained: 'I watched from the side of the stage and I never saw anything like Zack. 'He could have told the audience at any point, 'Tear up the place!' because these kids were in a frenzy. 'The energy was unbelievable. It was amazing, and it was so energetic that there was a cloud over the crowd, a cloud of condensation. 'You know at the end of the Grand National, and you see the steam rising off the horses? 'I don't know how many tens of thousands going crazy and moshing and jumping up and down. I'll never forget it. The sight of it. It was fantastic.' 'We had the backstage area, and then we had a tunnel going out to the pitch, and he insisted every time that the tunnel would be cleared, and that absolutely no one would be in the tunnel, and of course, the Saw Doctors couldn't help themselves." Tom Dunne Dunne insists the Feile gigs were the benchmark. He said: 'That whole idea was forming around Thurles and you can see the kind of development after that, from Witness to Oxygen to Electric Picnic. And you know this idea that that's the norm. You see the best bands of the day and food is great, and you can camp, and it's all safe and good. 'Well, you really say it all starts with Macroom. I think Macroom is the first modern festival in Ireland. 'But it really starts to get a form about it around Feile.' The first six episodes of Fields Of Dreams are available on 6 The Saw Doctors became legends at the Tipperary event Credit: Steve Gullick 6 Steve Wall ended up headlining in 1992 when Bryan Adams asked to leave early Credit: Dave Mitchell/Avalon/Getty Images 6 Tom Dunne said Van Morrison was a guy you didn't walk up to Credit:6 By 1993, Feile was attracting the likes of Rage Against The Machine Credit:
Irish Times
3 hours ago
- Irish Times
Transgender prisoner held in ‘squalid, dungeon-like' conditions
A transgender prisoner was found in squalid conditions in a 'dungeon-like' unit of Limerick Prison , said an anti-torture report. The Council of Europe 's Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) said the inmate, who it referred to as Prisoner X, was kept in near total isolation in the High Protection Unit of Limerick Men's prison with minimal access to natural light and ventilation. The CPT report did not name the prisoner, but it is understood to be a Brazilian named Barbie Kardashian who at the time of the inspection in 2024 was the only transgender prisoner in the custody of the Irish Prison Service. The Kardashian case has caused controversy in the past due to her history of violent offending and concerns about the threat she poses to other inmates and staff. READ MORE In early 2023, she was jailed for 4½ years for threatening to torture, rape and murder her mother. At the time, Leo Varadkar , then taoiseach, said violent biological males should not be housed in women's prisons. Kardashian was initially held in Limerick Women's Prison where she was accused of threatening to kill or cause serious harm to a fellow woman prisoner and a prison officer in 2023. She was transferred to Limerick Men's Prison following a directive from then minister for justice Helen McEntee. Last year, she was acquitted of threatening the woman prisoner and prison officer, but remains in the men's prison serving the remainder of her original sentence. Kardashian (25) is housed in the High Protection Unit on the D1 wing of the prison where inmates who require special protection are kept. Others on the wing include Jonathan Dowdall, the former Sinn Féin councillor who gave evidence against Gerry Hutch. In its report, the CPT described the High Protection Unit as 'dungeon-like' and said it is concerned about a number of prisoners who are held on 22-hour lock-up and 'hence were in a situation of de facto solitary confinement'. The committee said it was 'particularly struck by the situation of a transgender woman' who was 'living in squalid conditions with minimal access to natural light and ventilation.' She is kept in her cell for 23 hours a day, it said. At the end of their visit, the committee members made an 'immediate observation' that the inmate should be placed in a better cell. She should be given more time out of her cell and 'a meaningful regime of activities', it said. In a document responding to the recommendations, the State said the prisoner was able to use 'all services available within the prison'. It said work is ongoing to refurbish D1 wing of the prison. Elsewhere in its report, the CPT was highly critical of the overcrowding affecting most Irish prisons which has resulted in mentally ill prisoners and a pregnant inmate having to sleep on the floor. It was particularly critical of Cloverhill Prison in Dublin where inmates are subject to a 'degrading regime', including squalid cells shared by up to four men sleeping on mattresses on the floor. 'Taken together, this situation, in the Committee's view, may well be described as inhuman and degrading treatment.' The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (IHREC) called the findings 'harrowing' and called for the State to urgently ratify the UN Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture (OPCAT).
