Prepare for revolution now, Elon Musk tells London rally as police come under attack

As police in full riot gear fought to push back violent protesters on the fringes of Tommy Robinson’s Unite the Kingdom rally in London on Saturday, the richest man in the world told the crowd that they must prepare to fight.

Elon Musk’s image was beamed on to huge screens dotted along Whitehall as he spoke to Robinson and the gathered demonstrators, calling for “revolutionary government change”.

“Fight for your futures!” he told the crowd as the former leader of the English Defence League roused them.

Riot police were beaten and pelted with flares and bottles on the outskirts of the rally as an estimated 110,000 people flooded Whitehall and the surrounding streets.

Tech billionaire Musk’s appearance was a surprise. As he spoke to Robinson via video link, he painted a picture of violence-riven Britain, where people in villages were at risk of rape and murder and the government was trying to cover up crimes against children.

After saying that he wanted to see a UK where people “wake up and look forward to the future”, Musk went on: “We must have revolutionary government change for that to occur. And this is not ordinary-course-of-business sort of stuff.

“This really requires everyone to sort of marshal the people, to take charge and reform the government, and make sure the government is for the people, by the people.”

The SpaceX and Tesla founder made a series of allegations about the country and its government, claiming that “the left was the party of murder”, the BBC was “complicit in the destruction of Britain” and that the government “did not care about the people”.

Musk, who last visited the UK in November 2023, said: “I really think that there’s got to be a change of government in Britain. You can’t – we don’t have another four years, or whenever the next election is, it’s too long.

“Something’s got to be done. There’s got to be a dissolution of parliament and a new vote held.”

Musk said he wanted to address “the reasonable centre” and ask them to “look around”.

“If this continues, that violence is going to come to you – you will have no choice,” Musk said. “You’re in a fundamental situation where whether you choose violence or not, violence is coming to you. You either fight back or you die.”

Home secretary Shabana Mahmood said: “The right to peaceful protest is fundamental to this nation. I thank the police who worked hard to ensure much of today’s protest was peaceful, but I condemn those who have attacked and injured police officers. Anyone taking part in criminal activity will face the full force of the law.”

Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey said: “Our democracy is too precious to be a plaything for foreign tech bartons. Elon Musk doesn’t care about the British people or our rights. He only cares about himself and his ego.”

Last night No 10 refused to comment.

Musk’s intervention – his boldest incursion into UK politics yet – echoed his appearance via video link at a conference in Germany for the far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) party shortly before elections there in February, when the AfD became the second largest party in the country.

While Musk was speaking to Robinson, groups of Unite the Kingdom supporters confronted officers in what the Metropolitan police called “significant aggression” and “unacceptable violence”.

When Robinson asked the crowd if Britain was ready to fight, the tens of thousands gathered roared in affirmation.

The drizzly afternoon had begun with supporters of 42-year-old Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, converging on a stage in Whitehall. Police separated them from a counter-protest by Stand Up to Racism using a “sterile area”.

Shortly after 3pm, Unite the Kingdom marchers began to move via side streets and the Embankment, in effect surrounding the 5,000 Stand Up to Racism supporters.

By 3.30pm, the Met had called in reinforcements, drawn batons and deployed mounted officers and said officers were intervening in multiple locations to prevent Unite the Kingdom protesters breaching the cordon “or get to opposing groups”.

The Met said officers had been “assaulted with kicks and punches. Bottles, flares and other projectiles were thrown”.

While officers tried to find a way for the Stand Up to Racism supporters to leave, the anti-fascist counter-protesters remained trapped into the evening. As dusk fell, more than 100 officers on foot, backed up by dozens of police horses, rushed at Robinson supporters, pushing them back.

Last night the Met said that 26 officers had been injured, four seriously, in the disorder and they had arrested 25 people.

The size of the crowd appeared to catch police by surprise, with Unite the Kingdom demonstrators stretching across Westminster Bridge when the rally began.

Addressing his supporters earlier to rapturous applause, Robinson said: “You know why you’re here – a bigger, better, brighter future for our country.” What that meant was often unclear.

Flares were set off in the crowd as they chanted “Oh Tommy, Tommy”, abused Keir Starmer and shouted “we love Trump”.

Signs included “stop the boats”, “police pick your side” and “Christ is king”. Others held up framed photographs of Charlie Kirk, the Turning Point USA co-founder murdered in Utah last week.

After one round of chanting Robinson’s name, a woman in her 50s said: “He’s fighting for us, for our free speech. We need to get them out. All of them – the migrants, the illegals.”

Her husband chimed in: “We’ve got grandchildren. We want to keep them safe.”

The sentiment was echoed throughout the crowd; the belief that Britain’s children are under threat from Muslim grooming gangs and small boat arrivals.

Robinson was followed by speakers including former reality TV star Katie Hopkins, actor Laurence Fox and members of far-right parties from across Europe.

“This is the biggest demonstration in Britain’s history,” Robinson said. In reality, it was not even the biggest this year.

Speakers, signs and chants throughout the afternoon referenced a clash of civilisations, and anti-Muslim sentiment was rife.

Religion was a recurring theme among the speakers and performers, with the first words said on the PA system praising “the king of kings, lord of lords, Jesus Christ”.

Four huge LCD screens that beamed Musk’s image along Whitehall had earlier displayed signs saying “thank you to our sponsors” and listed Advance UK, an organisation founded by Ben Habib, the former co-deputy leader of Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party, as well as a crypto token created by Just Fomo, a company incorporated three months ago, and V-Social, which claims to be an X-style social media platform where likes earn crypto tokens.

David Bull, the chair of Reform UK, posted a video on Musk’s platform, X, of the Unite the Kingdom marchers, calling them “the silent majority of the United Kingdom”.

Habib, who left Reform to set up Advance UK, said Robinson had joined the group.

Speaking before the rally, he told The Observer there was no longer a division between right and left in UK politics, but between “those who believe in global principles and so-called liberalism, and those who actually believe in a nation state borders sovereignty”.

Photograph by Tom Pilston. Other by Sophia Evans/The Observer