‘Father Ted’ co-creator Graham Linehan, a long outspoken critic on gender ideology, says five armed officers arrested him at Heathrow over three posts on X.
Comedian Graham Linehan, one of Britain’s most successful sitcom writers and co-creator of “Father Ted,” was arrested at Heathrow Airport on Sept. 2 on suspicion of inciting violence in relation to posts he made on X.
Linehan released on his Substack blog an audio recording of his arrest, in which a police officer can be heard telling him of allegations that on April 19, 2025, he “published a post on X intended to instill hatred and incite violence.”
Linehan has been an outspoken critic of transgender ideology, which he sees as encroaching on women’s, children’s, and gay rights, and has seen his shows canceled over his views.
Writing in his Substack, he said that the moment he stepped off the plane at Heathrow, “five armed police officers were waiting.”
The Irish comedian was flying in from Arizona, where he has been since December 2024.
“Not one, not two—five. They escorted me to a private area and told me I was under arrest for three tweets,” he said.
He shared screenshots of the posts he said he was arrested for, including one in which he called it a “violent, abusive act” for a trans-identified male to be in a female-only space, and also read, “make a scene, call the cops and if all else fails punch him in the [expletive].”
The second post he shared was a shot from a pro-transgender protest, which he described as “a photo you can smell.”
The third tweet he shared, a follow-up to the photo, read: “I hate them. Misogynists and homophobes.”
He said that at a police station at Heathrow, his belt, bag, and devices were confiscated.
“Then I was shown into a small green-tiled cell with a bunk, a silver toilet in the corner, and a message from Crimestoppers on the ceiling next to a concave mirror that was presumably there to make you reflect on your life choices,” he said.
He said that his single bail condition was “not to go on Twitter.”
By Owen Evans
