Punk duo Bob Vylan received praise from BBC staff following their controversial performance at the Glastonbury music festival, which included chants of “death to the IDF” (Israeli Defense Forces), reports BritPanorama.
The BBC deemed the live broadcast of the group’s chants as a violation of its editorial guidelines regarding harm and offense. Sir Keir Starmer characterized the chant as “appalling hate speech.”
In a subsequent interview with The Louis Theroux Podcast, lead singer Bobby Vylan indicated his willingness to repeat the performance at Glastonbury, claiming that members of the BBC production team described their set as “fantastic.”
Vylan recounted, “We come off stage. It’s normal. Nobody thought anything. Nobody. Even staff at the BBC were like ‘That was fantastic! We loved that’…. Nobody at the BBC at that time was there like, ‘oh my gosh.’”
The BBC declined to comment on Vylan’s remarks, but a spokesperson restated the organization’s position, noting that “errors were made both in the lead-up to and during Bob Vylan’s appearance.”
A former member of the BBC Glastonbury production team clarified, “There are 550 people there working for the BBC. Whoever spoke to Bob Vylan might not have been a decision-maker, or even watching the output in an attentive way. There are many distractions.”
A BBC investigation classified Bob Vylan as “high risk” yet suitable for live broadcast, with measures including monitoring the feed and offense warnings displayed on screen.
However, Glastonbury viewers heard chants such as “Death, death to the IDF” and “Free Palestine,” alongside derogatory language aimed at a record company executive and references to “Zionists,” as identified by the BBC’s complaints unit.
Cutting the livestream “was an option open to those on the ground on the day,” but BBC Director-General Tim Davie, present at the event, admitted that the option was not exercised. He later ruled that the rap duo’s performance should not be available on-demand after learning of the broadcast.
The incident led to Lorna Clarke, BBC Director of Music, temporarily stepping back from her responsibilities regarding live music. Consequently, the BBC announced a policy change, stating that they will no longer stream live “high risk” performances at music festivals.
In the podcast, Theroux suggested that the BBC staff may have been casual in their praise, describing them as a “non-player character” in the industry. “Any band comes off, you go, ‘you smashed it, fantastic’,” Theroux remarked.
Defending their performance, Bobby Vylan stated, “If I was to go on Glastonbury again tomorrow, yes I would do it again. I’m not regretful of it.” He added, “I’d do it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays. I’m not regretful of it at all, like the subsequent backlash that I’ve faced. It’s minimal. It’s minimal compared to what people in Palestine are going through.”
Vylan dismissed concerns from the Jewish charity Community Security Trust about a surge in antisemitic incidents following their Glastonbury performance, questioning, “What are they counting as antisemitic incidents? I don’t think I have created an unsafe atmosphere for the Jewish community.”
Leo Pearlman, a Jewish entertainment producer, critiqued Theroux for not challenging Vylan more forcefully during the interview. “Louis Theroux has every right to interview whoever he wants, but with that right comes responsibility,” said Pearlman, CEO of Fulwell.
The BBC is no longer involved with Theroux’s podcast series, which is now produced solely for Spotify.
After the performance, a BBC spokesperson expressed regret, stating, “We deeply regret that such offensive and deplorable behaviour appeared on the BBC and want to apologise to our viewers and listeners and in particular the Jewish community. We are also unequivocal that there can be no place for antisemitism at, or on, the BBC.”
Vylan’s conversation with Theroux was recorded on October 1, prior to the attacks on a Manchester synagogue on October 2 that resulted in two fatalities and three injuries, as well as before the ceasefire in Gaza that began on October 10.
