Nigel Farage challenged the BBC during a press conference Thursday, accusing the broadcaster of applying inconsistent standards when questioning him about alleged racist remarks from his school days.
The Reform UK leader, who has repeatedly denied making racist comments as a student, pointed to the BBC’s own programming from the 1970s and 1980s as evidence of different cultural attitudes during that era. He suggested the corporation should apologize for airing shows like The Black and White Minstrel Show, It Ain’t Half Hot Mum, and Till Death Us Do Part—programs now widely viewed as containing offensive content.
“The double standards and hypocrisy of the BBC are absolutely astonishing,” Farage told reporters, announcing he would no longer engage with the broadcaster until it issued an apology for its historical programming choices.
The confrontation follows weeks of BBC coverage regarding allegations from former Dulwich College classmates. Some contemporaries claim Farage made racist and antisemitic statements during his school years, including one who alleges he said “Hitler was right.” The Today programme recently asked Reform’s deputy leader Richard Tice to discuss Farage’s “relationship with Hitler”—a framing Farage described as “despicable” and “disgusting.”
While continuing to deny making racist remarks with “malicious or nasty” intent, Farage acknowledged the 1970s culture was “very, very different” from today’s standards. He shared a letter from a Jewish former classmate who described the atmosphere as involving “macho tongue-in-cheek schoolboy banter” that was sometimes offensive but “never with malice.” The letter writer stated he never witnessed Farage racially abuse anyone and called recent accusations “politically dubious recollections from nearly half a century ago.”
Farage claimed to have received numerous similar supportive messages from former schoolmates.
Record Political Donation
The press conference coincided with news that Reform UK received £9 million from businessman Christopher Harborne—the largest single donation to a British political party from a living individual. Harborne, a cryptocurrency investor and aviation entrepreneur based in Thailand, previously supported the Brexit Party and Conservatives under Boris Johnson.
Political Responses
Labour Party chairman Anna Turley criticized Farage for inconsistent explanations, stating he has alternately claimed he can’t remember the incidents, denied them outright, and deflected by referencing others’ behavior. “Instead of shamelessly demanding apologies from others, Nigel Farage should be apologising to the victims of his alleged appalling remarks,” Turley said.
A Conservative spokesman characterized the press conference as evidence that “Reform’s one-man band is in chaos once again,” adding that Farage was too preoccupied defending himself to address other political priorities.
Reform deputy leader Richard Tice has called the accusers “lying” and dismissed their claims as “made up twaddle by people who don’t want Nigel to be prime minister.”
The BBC has not yet commented on Farage’s accusations or his announced boycott.
