Skip to content 
Search

Latest Stories

Dame Sara Khan urges to ban Patriotic Alternative for racially abusing Sterling

Dame Sara Khan urges to ban Patriotic Alternative for racially abusing Sterling

A top government adviser on extremism has urged to ban Britain’s biggest far-right organisation Patriotic Alternative for racially abusing the England footballer Raheem Sterling, according to a report. 

Dame Sara Khan, the first counter-extremism commissioner and No 10’s independent adviser for social cohesion and resilience has made the demand as footage showed Patriotic Alternative's supporters racially abusing Sterling, reported The Times.


The group’s activists were secretly filmed describing Sterling as a “chimp” and a “n*****”. They also joked about shooting sports stars and others who take the knee in support of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement, the report added.

The footage was obtained by an undercover reporter for Channel 4’s Dispatches after he spent more than a year infiltrating Patriotic Alternative. The documentary also highlights one of its leader’s links to National Action, the proscribed neo-Nazi terrorist outfit.

Dame Sara Khan told Dispatches: “They are fundamentally helping to create a climate that is conducive to terrorism and violence.”

Patriotic Alternative was launched in 2019 by Mark Collett, a former youth leader of the British National Party and a self-declared Nazi sympathiser.

It claims to be recruiting more than 200 members a month and has a slick social media presence that has exploited anti-lockdown and anti-vaccination sentiment.

Sara Khan: Victims of extremism asked to stand up to assist UK with handling contempt Dame Sara Khan

The group, which claims that white people will be a minority in Britain in the next 40 years, has also targeted teenagers through online gaming competitions.

According to the report, the racist comments were filmed last July at an annual gathering of Patriotic Alternative supporters at a campsite in the Peak District on the eve of the final of the European Championship.

However, the comments violate Patriotic Alternative’s supposed “code of conduct” banning racial slurs and violence.

The Times report revealed that the group had told the campsite owner the gathering was for a community group that helped the homeless.

A central figure in the Channel 4 show is Sam Melia, Patriotic Alternative’s regional organiser for Yorkshire and the husband of Laura Towler, the group’s deputy leader.

Melia, 32, is shown marching alongside National Action followers in Darlington in November 2016, weeks before the group was banned by the Home Office for promoting terrorism.

Several months later he is also photographed at a dinner alongside senior National Action figures, including Christopher Lythgoe, who was jailed in 2018 for membership in a proscribed organisation.

National Action celebrated the far-right killer of Jo Cox, the Labour MP for Batley & Spen in West Yorkshire, and has unfurled banners in public proclaiming: “Hitler was right.”

In the documentary, Melia claims that Collett and Patriotic Alternative were behind a string of controversial political leaflets at the 2021 Batley & Spen by-election that appeared at first glance to have been issued by Labour and the Trades Union Congress.

The spoof leaflets featured a picture of Sir Keir Starmer taking the knee and declaring that the party was “Fighting white privilege”.

Dispatches claimed that Patriotic Alternative activists intervened in a similar way this year during the Southend West by-election, which was triggered by the murder in October of Sir David Amess, the veteran Conservative MP, by an Islamist extremist.

The report added that the revelations could lead to a formal investigation by the Electoral Commission.

Patriotic Alternative denied Melia has ever been a member of National Action.

“It is clear that some of those in attendance did not adhere to the code of conduct. However, using this small minority of attendees to characterise the group as a whole is disingenuous and unfair. Patriotic Alternative believes in carrying out political activity through democratic and peaceful means with our primary purpose being that of community building," a spokesman told The Times.

More For You

Norman Tebbit
Following Thatcher’s third general election victory in 1987, Tebbit stepped back from frontline politics to care for his wife. (Photo: Getty Images)

What was the Tebbit Test and why was it controversial?

LORD NORMAN TEBBIT, the former cabinet minister who introduced the controversial “cricket test” to question the loyalty of migrants, has died at the age of 94. The test, later known as the “Tebbit Test,” suggested that immigrants who supported cricket teams from their countries of origin instead of England were not fully integrated into British society. His death was confirmed on Monday by his son, William, who asked for privacy for the family.

Tebbit first spoke about the test in 1990 as a Conservative MP. In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, he said, “A large proportion of Britain's Asian population fail to pass the cricket test. Which side do they cheer for? It’s an interesting test. Are you still harking back to where you came from or where you are?”

Keep ReadingShow less
Pedro Pascal

Pedro Pascal shuts down age criticism after being cast as Mister Fantastic

Instagram/fantasticfour

Pedro Pascal hits back at At Marvel fans questioning his 'Fantastic Four' casting at 50

Highlights:

  • Pedro Pascal is cast as Reed Richards in Fantastic Four: First Steps, making him the oldest actor to play the role.
  • Some Marvel fans criticised his age, claiming he’s too old to portray the superhero.
  • Pascal responded at a London fan event, saying the negativity "comes with the territory."
  • The Marvel reboot releases in cinemas on 25 July 2025 and features Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, and Julia Garner.

Pedro Pascal is brushing off the online criticism surrounding his casting as Reed Richards in Fantastic Four: First Steps, saying he’s focused on meeting fan expectations, even if some think he’s too old for the role. The 50-year-old The Last of Us star, who will soon join the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the stretchy genius Mister Fantastic, addressed the backlash at a fan event in London. Many social media users had argued that Pascal was miscast due to his age, but the actor says he’s learned to take the criticism in stride.

  Pedro Pascal addresses fan backlash over playing Reed Richards at 50Getty Images

Keep ReadingShow less
Kangana Ranaut

Kangana says she isn’t equal to a labourer, mother or Mukesh Ambani

Getty Images

Kangana Ranaut calls equality a delusion, says it created a "generation of morons"

Highlights:

  • Kangana Ranaut says the concept of equality has created a “generation of morons”.
  • Claims she’s not equal to Ambani, her mother, or even a labourer.
  • Her current views contradict her 2018 stance on gender equality in cinema.
  • Actor-MP to appear in a psychological thriller with R. Madhavan.

Kangana Ranaut has courted controversy again, this time with her take on equality. In a recent interview, the actor-turned-politician called the modern idea of equality “a delusion”, claiming it has produced a generation that overestimates itself. The Queen star, now an elected MP from Mandi, also argued that no one is equal to anyone, citing herself, Mukesh Ambani, her mother, and even daily-wage workers as examples of how everyone plays unique roles in society.

 Kangana Ranaut Kangana Ranaut speaks on equality and her role as a ParliamentarianGetty Images

Keep ReadingShow less
Sinner-Getty

Sinner, who has already won the US Open and Australian Open, will now face defending champion Carlos Alcaraz. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty Images

Sinner thrashes Djokovic to reach first Wimbledon final

Highlights:

     
  • Sinner will face Carlos Alcaraz in a rematch of the French Open final
  •  
  • Djokovic admits physical struggles and injury played a role in defeat
  •  
  • Despite loss, Djokovic says he plans to return to Wimbledon next year

JANNIK SINNER defeated Novak Djokovic in straight sets in the Wimbledon semi-final on Friday to reach his first final at the All England Club. The world number one won 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 and will face Carlos Alcaraz in Sunday’s final.

Keep ReadingShow less
bella thorne Charlie Puth

Bella Thorne says Charlie Puth launched a hate train after she refused to sleep with him

Getty Images

Bella Thorne says Charlie Puth launched a hate train after she refused to sleep with him

Highlights:

  • Bella Thorne accuses Charlie Puth of sparking a ‘hate train’ after she turned him down.
  • She claims he publicly misled fans about their brief romance in 2016.
  • Puth had previously implied she cheated on her ex Tyler Posey with him.
  • Thorne is now engaged to Mark Emms; Puth married Brooke Sansone in 2024.

Actor Bella Thorne has reignited a years-old controversy with singer Charlie Puth, accusing him of turning public opinion against her in 2016 after she refused to sleep with him. The former Disney star made the claims in an Instagram comment responding to singer Jade Thirlwall’s recent remarks about never wanting to work with Puth.

 bella thorne Charlie Puth Actress Bella Thorne and Charlie Puth attend the Y100's Jingle Ball 2016Getty Images

Keep ReadingShow less