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MAY 21• 2023 The Mail on Sunday
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MILITANT animal rights activists who tried to halt the Grand National are now planning to sabotage the Epsom Derby, The Mail on Sunday can reveal. Campaigners from Animal Rising boasted that they are planning to use glue and `lock- on devices' to secure themselves to the perimeter fencing at the famous race- course on June 3. The organisers said they have already conducted secret reconnaissance missions of the track to pinpoint security weak- nesses. They boasted that Epsom is `almost unpoliceable' because some sections of the course are freely open and accessible to members of the general public. Like at Aintree, some campaigners will attend a legal demonstration outside the venue, while a smaller group will try to break on to the track in an attempt to `delay or cancel' the race. Animal Rising spokesman Nathan McGov- ern said: 'We are just over two weeks away from the Epsom Derby and we have already made it very public that we intend to cause disruption. Epsom racetrack is very vast - I think it is the biggest perimeter that they `Their actions could threaten the lives of the horses' have - and there is a non-ticketed public access area, too. `Police and The Jockey Club are very wor- ried about their ability to secure the course and prevent disruption from happening. You could say they have almost admitted that the racetrack is unpoliceable.' The group is encouraging people to sign up for non-violent direct action training days around the country ahead of the spec- tacle, one of the biggest race days of the year, which will be watched by thousands. Six female Animal Rising protesters, don- ning sashes with the words `Animal Jus- tice', were arrested after they clambered on to the Epsom Derby racetrack last year.
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HAULED AWAY: Police drag protesters from the racecourse at last year's Epsom Derby, after they clambered on to the track. Six women were arrested After failed bid to ruin Grand National... Animal rights mob boasts: We have got hundreds ready to the..p. erby ot age ltilm iii.ltwai•clarini,i.o., ,i4r0 -IN,144m, rhrm4e1,.invAistiwi..no* - Air' 0 VEGAN MO 4 ''' inal behaviour or disorder and de- escalating tensions. We will seek to facilitate peaceful protests but any criminal activity or risk to public safety will not be tolerated.'
But Animal Rising predicts that `up to 1,000' protesters will attend the race this year and said: `We'll be disrupting the Epsom Derby to con- tinue the conversation we started at the Grand National.' The vegan group advertised the protest as a `day of family fun, free from animal exploitation' and are organising activities including an eggless spoon race. This latest stunt comes after Ani- mal Rising's plot to wreck the Grand National was sensationally foiled by an undercover reporter at The Mail on Sunday. Police arrested 118 protesters after dozens of activists tried to storm the security fences and stop the world-famous event from taking place.
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Nevin Truesdale, chief executive of The Jockey Club, which runs Epsom Downs Racecourse, said: 'We have been working with Surrey Police to ensure we have robust security measures in place. `While we respect anyone's right to peaceful and lawful protest, we would condemn illegal and reck- less plans to breach security in an effort to disrupt action on the track and endanger the safety of the participants in the strongest possi- ble terms.'
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of their dangerous plans, it is vital they police this event robustly.' A police spokesman said: `The Epsom Derby is one of the largest events we police in Surrey and thorough planning takes place to ensure we keep the public safe. `The guiding principles of polic- ing protests are the safety of pro- testers, the public and police officers involved, preventing crim-
FANS: Mike and Zara Tindall at Epsom last year. Right: Our story last month
Remarkably, the race was delayed by just 14 minutes after security guards, who had been forewarned by this newspaper, acted swiftly to Animal Rising, founded in 2019, is an offshoot of the militant eco- group Extinction Rebellion. Earlier this month, five activists from the group also disrupted races at Don- caster by climbing over the fences. Builders' radio demolishes the competition! remove protesters from the track. Animal Rising has warned it plans to disrupt horse races throughout the summer, which could include targeting the first Royal Ascot of King Charles's reign. Tim Bonner, chief executive of the Countryside Alliance, said: `Animal Rising are desperate atten- tion-seekers whose actions could threaten the welfare of horses. `Now that Surrey Police are aware
By Natasha Livingstone ring in about the strangest items dumped onsite. Its success bucks a wider trend, with audiences for BBC network radio shrinking by four per cent in the same period. Last week, industry figures revealed that Radio 4 has suffered its lowest listening figures in 16 years, while Radio 2 has shed 121,000 weekly listeners. Fix Radio
A BUILDERS' radio station launched by a graduate has become the fastest-growing radio station in the UK. Fix Radio, which entertains tradespeople, grew by nearly 250 per cent since its national launch in May last year, reaching just under 300,000 listeners. The station's popular segments include The Bald Builders Break- fast, The Plastering Show and What's In Your Skip?, where callers
was built by Leeds University graduate Louis Timpany, 30. When he was doing some con- struction work he noticed that his fellow workers listened to the radio from dawn to dusk but were infuri- ated by repetitive music. Within six months, the idea for Fix Radio was born - and in 2016 the station launched in London by delivering 30,000 bacon butties to builders. 'We visited several thousand construction sites, giving out bacon
sandwiches and swapping their radios,' said Mr Timpany. The station kept growing and last year crowdfunded £l million to launch nationally. A year on, Fix Radio's average listener tunes in for 23 hours per week. Audiences for BBC radio listen for just 13.9 hours and commercial radio 9.8 hours per week. The station is also a commercial success. Broadcasting from Vauxhall in
South London, Fix Radio focuses on providing upbeat, varied music that builders can sing along to. Its most popular songs include Sex On Fire by Kings Of Leon, Modjo's Lady (Hear Me Tonight) and Coldplay's Viva La Vida. The station covers topics from tool theft to mental health, with its show adesmen turned radio s who were hand trained by the radio station. 46 265
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