Rugby Borough Council pulls venue for Katie Hopkins’ stand-up show over ‘safety concerns’

Katie Hopkins’ stand-up show at Rugby’s Benn Hall in Warwickshire has been cancelled by Rugby Borough Council, following police advice about a planned protest by Stand Up to Racism outside the venue.

The show, part of her Batsh*t Bonkers Britain tour, had been scheduled for 19 July.

This isn’t free speech. This is about public safety and moral responsibility

Warwickshire Pride

The cancellation follows a “community-wide campaign” by Stand Up to Racism’s Rugby branch, calling on the Council to revoke the booking or else they would protest outside of the event. Their petition, which describes the event as a “platform for hate,” has received 381 signatures, surpassing its target of 250.

The petition stated: “Katie Hopkins is not just a ‘controversial’ figure. She is known internationally for spreading hate—including racist, transphobic, Islamophobic, xenophobic, and ableist views.” It cites several of Hopkins’ public statements, including comparing migrants to “cockroaches” and calling for “gunships” to stop refugee crossings. It concluded: “This isn’t free speech. This is about public safety and moral responsibility.”

[Rugby Borough Council] cancelled the event due to safety concerns for attendees and protestors, following advice from Warwickshire Police and other partners

Warwickshire Pride has supported this campaign and returned a £250 grant it had received from the Council for this year’s Pride celebrations. “We will not take or keep money from any organisation that allows hate to have a platform,” it said, whilst also committing to support the planned protest and criticising the Council for “claiming to support Pride and LGBTQ+ communities” whilst allowing the event to go ahead.

Hopkins responded, claiming she had been “lied to” regarding safety concerns. “The two council officers who decided to close a public space against 480 paying guests should be asked to resign,” she said.

In a public statement, Rugby Borough Council has denied these claims, stating it cancelled the event due to safety concerns for attendees and protestors, following advice from Warwickshire Police and other partners. They added that the Benn Hall is “primarily a family venue.”

Hopkins appeared outside the Benn Hall, greeting supporters and telling them she would return to Rugby in October, and ‘refuse[d] to be cancelled’

When asked to respond to accusations that her stage show included racist and homophobic content, Hopkins described such questions as “ridiculous” and “undeserving of an answer.” When informed that these accusations featured prominently in public objections, she declined to comment.

The show had sold all 480 tickets, according to Hopkins’ tour team. It is one of several appearances on her tour to face opposition or cancellation, including events in Birmingham, Edinburgh, and Swansea.

On the evening of the cancelled performance, Hopkins appeared outside the Benn Hall, greeting supporters and telling them she would return to Rugby in October, and “refuse[d] to be cancelled.”