Hat tip to Gillyflowerblog, one of the great commenters on this blog, for finding this and posting a comment about it. Right-wing internet host Alex Belfield has been in court this week defending himself from charges of stalking eight people on the Net, including the presenter Jeremy Vine. He started harassing some of them as far back as 2012, when he left BBC Radio Leeds. The Beeb report begins
‘A former BBC radio presenter has gone on trial accused of stalking eight people, including TV and radio presenter Jeremy Vine.
Alex Belfield is alleged to have repeatedly harassed the victims, including via email and through his YouTube channel and Twitter account.
Mr Belfield, who is 42 and lives in Nottingham, denies eight counts of stalking.
When arrested he told police he was “the victim of a BBC witch-hunt”.
Mr Belfield, of Shaldon Close, Mapperley, is not accused of physically stalking the eight complainants, but the prosecution said some of them were “worried about the possibility of Mr Belfield turning up at their homes”.
Opening the case at Nottingham Crown Court, John McGuinness QC said Mr Vine was so worried “he thought he ought to take security advice for the protection of himself and his family”.
The full wording of the charges claims Mr Belfield, who is representing himself at the trial, had “pursued a course of conduct that amounted to harassment” of the complainants, which had “amounted to stalking” and caused them “serious alarm or distress”.’
Belfield has had some kind of feud going on against various TV and radio personalities and workers for years and has frequently criticised and attacked various people on his internet show, like Vine. Several commenters have said in the past that there was more going on regarding their various legal cases against Belfield than he was telling us. Gillyflower, who posted a link to this, commented:
‘Well well well. Years of it
BBC News – Alex Belfield: Former BBC presenter ‘stalked fellow broadcasters’
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-62036724‘
Belfield has, of course, been on the Net presenting his side of the story, and A Certain Internet Historian has also posted a video about it. It’s going to be very interesting how this case develops, and what else comes out.
Tags: Alex Belfield, BBC Radio Leeds, Court Cases, Gillyflowerblog, History Debunked, Internet, Jeremy Vine, Nottingham, Simon Webb, Stalking, Twitter, Youtube
Beastrabban\'s Weblog 
July 6, 2022 at 6:45 am |
OFF TOPIC AGAIN. SORRY!: CORRECTION: JVL tells me that the duo suing Jeremy are not JLM but “much further to the right”. I can’t check my source because it was one of those flash “now you see it, now you don’t” items on (I think) mln news – on either Internet Explorer or Microsoft Edge.
July 6, 2022 at 8:04 am |
That’s interesting, Brian. It sounds to me like they could come from the British branch of the Israeli party formed by members of Gush Emunim, the far-right Zionist terrorists who were caught trying to blow up the great mosque in Jerusalem and want to cleanse Eretz Israel of the Palestinians. This is just speculation, but it would fit the description.,
July 6, 2022 at 2:16 pm |
Speaking of Simon Webb, I suspect he’s not happy about the “reshuffle”, given Zahawi is now Chancellor. I’m not sure he’d even like Kemi Badenoch to be PM (even though he shares many of her views). I don’t think he’d vote Conservative anyway, as I vaguely remember him putting out a video in May where he endorses a candidate for a very minor hard-right-wing party (English Democrats I think).
July 6, 2022 at 2:48 pm |
I noticed that Webb has put out a video ‘Will Britain Gets Its First PM from an Ethnic Minority? And Does It Matter?’ He has made a video objecting to Nadhim Zahawi running education because Zahawi’s an Iraqi immigrant and so can’t be trust with subjects like the English language or British history. I haven’t noticed that Zahawi was defi8cient in these subjects, or that his attitude to British history was any different than the rest of the Tories. He certainly has criticised the Tories, mostly I think for their stance on immigration. I didn’t know he’d endorsed a candidate for the English Democrats. Thanks for that bit of information. Quite frankly, I’m surprised they’re still around.
July 6, 2022 at 3:03 pm
I’ve just re-read the title for that video. He actually endorsed the candidate for the English Constitution Party- not the English Democrats. Although I do wonder, if Zahawi, Javid or Badenoch became Tory leader, would he put up a Tube video endorsing Britain First? Yes, they are once again a registered political party- God help us.
July 6, 2022 at 4:34 pm
I’ve never heard of the English Constitution Party, unless they were the bunch of nutters who tried to occupy a library somewhere citing Magna Carta? I understand that Britain First is back. I don’t know if he would support them, but I’m sure some of his commenters would.
July 6, 2022 at 5:32 pm
The English Constitution Party are that very same bunch of “Magna Carta” bullshitters- which would fit as Simon Webb does seem to still believe that the 2020 American election was stolen.
July 6, 2022 at 5:44 pm |
Thanks, Mark. I have to say that from what I read about their antics trying to occupy the library they came across as a bunch of far right clowns.it hadn’t registered with me that Webb believes that the 2020 election was stolen, but I don’t doubt you’re right. This puts a lot of his views into perspective.
July 6, 2022 at 3:46 pm |
Day 2
BBC News – Alex Belfield trial: BBC boss ‘terrified of radio host who stalked her’
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-62068304
July 6, 2022 at 4:40 pm |
If this is true then there’s something seriously psychologically wrong with him. To carry on a feud and making vindictive comments about Breen on the Net for 11 years, just cause she didn’t renew his contract in 2011. And his venom got to the point where the poor woman has to hide behind a screen because of the fear he caused her.
July 6, 2022 at 4:43 pm
And this is the man who styles himself ‘the Voice of Reason’. If this is true, then it’s more like the Voice of Frothing Mad Rage’.
July 6, 2022 at 7:55 pm |
I would say there is a reason certain groups and individuals are watching this trial carefully.
Their form of “free speech” is really just them wanting to say vile things about vulnerable people and groups without the right to reply.
People who challenge this are either deleted, blocked or shouted down.
They will then write in the likes of The Mail, Telegraph or appear on GB News or Talk TV to say they have been cancelled.
It amazes me how many people just read headlines and make up their own stories that fit their prejudices and ignore the full story, Doc Russ Jackson has some good comments on this.
I have people who still think Alex Belfield is taking the victims to court and that he is not the defendant, despite all outlets stating this fact.
July 6, 2022 at 8:28 pm |
The same people you’re talking about are also going on about how the left is a totalitarian threat to free speech, because Twitter banned them for posting racist comments or something.
July 6, 2022 at 9:07 pm
Yes, as I’m sure you are aware, Belfield’s trial is about online stalking, not (as far as latest reports on Notts Live) physical stalking.
If Belfield is found guilty (innocent until proven guilty still hopefully is a thing) some who use YouTube and Twitter etc .. for other reasons may get a little nervous.