The frontman of scandal rappers Bob Vylan has doubled down on his ‘death to the IDF’ chant at Glastonbury – as watchdog Ofcom told the BBC it was ‘very concerned’ over Saturday’s live broadcast.
The artist who performs as Bobby Vylan – real name Pascal Robinson-Foster, 34 – is being investigated by Avon and Somerset Police over his performance.
Israel‘s government has been among those condemning the BBC and Glastonbury for Bob Vylan’s Saturday afternoon gig at the music festival in which there were calls for the death of Israeli soldiers in what was broadcast live by the corporation.
Police have launched a probe into the comments made by Bob Vylan, who led chants of ‘Free Palestine‘ and ‘Death to the IDF’.
And an Ofcom spokesperson has now said: ‘We are very concerned about the live stream of this performance, and the BBC clearly has questions to answer.
‘We have been speaking to the BBC over the weekend and we are obtaining further information as a matter of urgency, including what procedures were in place to ensure compliance with its own editorial guidelines.’
Critics including the Conservatives‘ Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp have called for action against the BBC – while comparisons have also been made with the 31-month prison sentence handed to Lucy Connolly for inciting racial hatred when posting about burning down a hotel housing asylum seekers.
The singer from the band, who officially keeps his identity secret, also declared ‘from the river to the sea Palestine will be free’ – and has now posted a new statement on Instagram, titled with the defiant phrase: ‘I said what I said.’
The artist who performs as Bobby Vylan – real name Pascal Robinson-Foster, 34 – is being investigated by Avon and Somerset Police over his performance at Glastonbury
He has responded to the furore with a new statement posted online on Instagram
He performs under the name Bobby Vylan alongside a drummer dubbing himself Bobbie Vylan
He also told of being ‘inundated with messages of both support and hatred’.
Robinson-Foster wrote: ‘As I lay in bed this morning, my phone buzzing non stop, inundated with messages of both support and hatred, I listen to my daughter typing out loud as she fills out a school survey asking for her feedback on the current state of her school dinners.
‘She expressed that she would like healthier meals, more options and dishes inspired by other parts of the world.
‘Listening to her voice her opinions on a matter that she cares about and affects her daily, reminds me that we may not be doomed after all.
‘Teaching our children to speak up for the change they want and need is the only way that we make this world a better place.
‘As we grow older and our fire possibly starts to dim under the suffocation of adult life and all its responsibilities, it is incredibly important that we encourage and inspire future generations to pick up the torch that was passed to us.
‘Let us display to them loudly and visibly the right thing to do when we want and need change.
‘Let them see us marching in the streets, campaigning on ground level, organising online and shouting about it on any and every stage that we are offered.
Police have launched a probe into the comments made by Bob Vylan, who led chants of ‘Free Palestine ‘ and ‘Death to the IDF’
The rapper’s real name is Pascal Robinson-Foster, who formed the band in hometown Ipswich
‘Today it is a change in school dinners, tomorrow it is a change in foreign policy.’
The group formed in their hometown of Ipswich in 2017 and have since gone on to release five albums including 2020 debut We Live Here.
The frontman has previously spoken of their struggles to get that first album cleared, describing it as being too ‘extreme’ for some in the music industry – telling the website Louder: ‘It was hard to get it released the conventional way – but it was in our power to release it.’
Lyrics on their tracks include saying on Britain Makes Me Violent how there is ‘nothing great’ about Great Britain, while on Reign the frontman declares: ‘Got a message for the thieves in the palace, we want the jewels back.’
Touching on the subject of housing in London, their song GYAG states: ‘Landlord just raised your rent – mate, get yourself a gun.’
As well as tackling subjects such as racism, homophobia, capitalism and toxic masculinity, the duo have also made a big deal about the importance of fatherhood.
The singer known as Bobby Vylan has said his daughter gave their debut album We Live Here its name and she also featured on the cover of their single Dream Big.
Bob Vylan’s entire performance on Saturday afternoon at Glastonbury was live-streamed on the BBC iPlayer but it has since been taken down.
Bob Vylan’s performance at Glastonbury on Saturday afternoon was broadcast by the BBC
The singer from the band, who has attempted to keep his identity secret, also declared: ‘From the river to the sea Palestine will be free’
Nevertheless, the corporation was lambasted for failing to cut the broadcast immediately after the ‘anti-Israel’ chanting.
The live stream continued for another 40 minutes until the end of Bob Vylan’s performance.
Avon and Somerset Police said video evidence from the performances would be assessed by officers to determine whether any offences may have been committed that would require a criminal investigation.
MailOnline has contacted the force for any further updates.
Glastonbury organiser Emily Eavis has described Bob Vylan’s chants as having ‘very much crossed a line’.
She said in a statement: ‘We are urgently reminding everyone involved in the production of the festival that there is no place at Glastonbury for antisemitism, hate speech or incitement to violence.’
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp accused Bob Vylan of ‘inciting violence and hatred’, saying they should be arrested and prosecuted.
And he said of the frontman: ‘By broadcasting his vile hatred, the BBC appear to have also broken the law.’
Bob Vylan, who formed eight years ago in London, refuse to reveal their real names because of what they call the ‘surveillance state’
Glastonbury had said all were welcome at the festival but added it ‘does not condone hate speech or incitement to violence of any kind from its performers’
Bob Vylan’s entire performance was live-streamed on the BBC iPlayer but it has since been taken down
Mr Philp posted on X, formerly Twitter: ‘I call on the police to urgently investigate and prosecute the BBC as well for broadcasting this.
‘Our national broadcaster should not be transmitting hateful material designed to incite violence and conflict.’
Toby Young, president of the Free Speech Union, raised the case of childminder Lucy Connolly, who was jailed for tweets she made about deporting asylum seekers and burning down hotels housing them after the Southport killings of three girls at a dance studio. She is currently serving a 31-month sentence.
He added: ‘She caveated what she said by adding ‘for all I care’, whereas he [Vylan] clearly does care and wants every member of the IDF, which includes virtually the entire population of Israel, to be killed, so the case for prosecuting him is stronger. But to be clear, neither should be prosecuted.’
Health Secretary Wes Streeting called the performance a ‘pretty shameless publicity stunt’, as he suggested the BBC and Glastonbury had ‘questions to answer about how we saw such a spectacle on our screens’.
And Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch called the scenes ‘grotesque’, writing on X: ‘Glorifying violence against Jews isn’t edgy. The West is playing with fire if we allow this sort of behaviour to go unchecked.’
Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary Helen Whately said she was ‘horrified’ and that that the BBC should have cut the feed, telling Times Radio: ‘Given the nature of the attacks on Israel, the BBC should not have kept broadcasting that. They should have cut the coverage immediately.’
Liberal Democrat culture, media and sport spokesman Max Wilkinson said: ‘Bob Vylan’s chants at Glastonbury yesterday were appalling.
Bob Vylan crowdsurfs in front of the West Holts stage during day four of Glastonbury festival
‘Cultural events are always a place for debate, but hate speech, antisemitism and incitements to violence have no place at Glastonbury or anywhere in our society.’
Shadow Foreign Secretary Dame Priti Patel wrote in the Daily Mail that the incident was a ‘systemic failure’, adding: ‘What happened at Glastonbury was dangerous.
‘Chants calling for the death of Israeli soldiers crossed a line no civilised society should ever tolerate, and it was shameful that the BBC continued with its live broadcast of this incitement to violence.
‘The fact the BBC – a national institution – broadcast this hate-fuelled content will risk legitimising and normalising those views in society.’
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has spoken to the BBC director general about Bob Vylan’s performance, a Government spokesperson said.
The BBC said it showed a warning during the performance and that viewers would not be able to access it on demand.
A spokesperson for the broadcaster said: ‘Some of the comments made during Bob Vylan’s set were deeply offensive.
‘During this live stream on iPlayer, which reflected what was happening on stage, a warning was issued on screen about the very strong and discriminatory language.
Chants of ‘death, death to the IDF’ prompted calls for the band members to be arrested over claims they had incited violence
Despite the outrage Bobby Vylan, who performs pseudonymously alongside bandmate Bobbie Vylan, posted a photo of some ice cream as he mocked ‘Zionists crying on socials’
‘We have no plans to make the performance available on demand.’
The Israeli embassy said it was ‘deeply disturbed by the inflammatory and hateful rhetoric expressed on stage at the Glastonbury Festival’.
The Campaign Against Antisemitism said it would be formally complaining to the BBC over what the group described as an ‘outrageous decision’ to broadcast Bob Vylan.
A spokesperson said: ‘Our national broadcaster must apologise for its dissemination of this extremist vitriol, and those responsible must be removed from their positions.’
