Neo-Nazis Terrorise Local Villagers

"It was like a miniature Nuremberg rally full of thugs"

Around 800 supporters of the notorious neo-nazi outfits Blood & Honour (B&H) and Combat 18 (C18) descended on the North Somerset village of Redhill last weekend, bringing fear to the inhabitants of the normally peaceful hamlet. Booking the event at The Bungalow Inn under the cover of a scooter club rally, the nazis in fact held their annual memorial marking the happy death of B&H founder, Ian Stuart, in a car crash many years ago. For those who don't know of him, Stuart was lead singer of nazi bonehead band Skrewdriver (known since the crash as Skrewydriver) and a pivotal figure in the neo-nazi movement.

Video footage taken by village residents speaks for itself. Boneheads urinated in locals' gardens, draped themselves in swastika flags, and seig-heiled their way through the night while listening to third-rate nazi 'music'. No wonder the villagers felt intimidated.

Some were so fearful that they left their houses to get away from the gathering. A local mum of two young children said

"My daughters were petrified, I was terrified and so was my husband. We ran into the house and I burst into tears and said to my husband 'we've got to go, I don't feel safe'.

I just can't stop crying as I think back to how bad it was – it was like a miniature Nuremberg rally full of thugs.

Another resident, who fled her home when the yobs invaded her garden and began using it as a public toilet, said

I think it was disgraceful behaviour to see from anybody. I was very upset that anyone can hold those views after what's happened in the past, and I found it incredibly distressing and so did my family.

In past years, the nazis used to be able to publicly announce their rallies and gatherings and would've had similar numbers attending from the UK alone. Persistant physical opposition by anti-fascists means that they can no longer do this. Instead, it's all done by backroom whispers and these days relies heavily on support and finance from fascists from abroad. They use the same tactics as they used here to hire facilities. It has always proved difficult, if not impossible, for anti-fascists to gather intelligence about these events, which is why it took us by surprise as much as anyone.

But it's no surprise to us that supporters of B&H / C18 are known to attend events organised by the British National Party – discussions on the neo-nazi website Stormfront often reveal the overlap between these vicious thugs and the so-called 'respectable' face of British fascism that the BNP tries to represent. Don't be fooled – behind their cheap suits and ties lurks the rotten core of Hitler-worshipping fanatics.

We're currently gathering as much information on this event as we can. It seems that there could be a local connection that allowed the organisers to book this event, and we'd particularly welcome info on that. Please use our contact form if you can help in any way.