Irish comedy writer Graham Lineham claimed he was arrested at Heathrow Airport as he disembarked from a flight from Arizona Monday. Five armed police officers arrested him and put him in a cell over a series of posts that he made on X in April.
Linehan claims he was admitted to the emergency department due to high blood pressure concerns after questioning.
The Met Police did not identify Linehan but a spokeswoman said: “On Monday, September 1 at 1pm officers arrested a man at Heathrow Airport after he arrived on an inbound American Airlines flight.”
“The man in his 50s was arrested on suspicion of inciting violence . This is in relation to posts on X,” she said.
“After being taken to police custody, officers became concerned for his health and he was taken to hospital. His condition is neither life-threatening nor life-changing.”
“He has now been bailed pending further investigation. The arrest was made by officers from the MPS Aviation Unit.”
The spokeswoman said it is routine for officers deputed at airports to carry firearms. “These were not drawn or used at any point during the arrest,” she added.
Arrest over X posts: JK Rowling slams
“What the f*** has the UK become?” she tweeted. “This is totalitarianism. Utterly deplorable," JK Rowling posted, reacting to the arrest.
Linehan recounted his arrest on his Substack. “The moment I stepped off the plane at Heathrow, five armed police officers were waiting. Not one, not two – five. They escorted me to a private area and told me I was under arrest for three tweets.
“In a country where paedophiles escape sentencing, where knife crime is out of control, where women are assaulted and harassed every time they gather to speak, the state had mobilised five armed officers to arrest a comedy writer for this tweet. I promise you, I am not making this up," he wrote.
What were the X posts for which Linehan was arrested?
“If a trans identified male is in a female-only space he is committing a violent, abusive act. Make a scene, call the cops and if all else fails, punch him in the balls" -- this was one of the posts.
In another post, he shared a picture of a trans-rights demonstration accompanied by the caption “a photo you can smell”.
“I hate them. Misogynists and homophobes. F*** em," another post read.
Linehan claims he was admitted to the emergency department due to high blood pressure concerns after questioning.
The Met Police did not identify Linehan but a spokeswoman said: “On Monday, September 1 at 1pm officers arrested a man at Heathrow Airport after he arrived on an inbound American Airlines flight.”
“The man in his 50s was arrested on suspicion of inciting violence . This is in relation to posts on X,” she said.
“After being taken to police custody, officers became concerned for his health and he was taken to hospital. His condition is neither life-threatening nor life-changing.”
“He has now been bailed pending further investigation. The arrest was made by officers from the MPS Aviation Unit.”
The spokeswoman said it is routine for officers deputed at airports to carry firearms. “These were not drawn or used at any point during the arrest,” she added.
Arrest over X posts: JK Rowling slams
“What the f*** has the UK become?” she tweeted. “This is totalitarianism. Utterly deplorable," JK Rowling posted, reacting to the arrest.
What the fuck has the UK become? This is totalitarianism. Utterly deplorable. https://t.co/CRl2n9rorh
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) September 2, 2025
Linehan recounted his arrest on his Substack. “The moment I stepped off the plane at Heathrow, five armed police officers were waiting. Not one, not two – five. They escorted me to a private area and told me I was under arrest for three tweets.
“In a country where paedophiles escape sentencing, where knife crime is out of control, where women are assaulted and harassed every time they gather to speak, the state had mobilised five armed officers to arrest a comedy writer for this tweet. I promise you, I am not making this up," he wrote.
What were the X posts for which Linehan was arrested?
“If a trans identified male is in a female-only space he is committing a violent, abusive act. Make a scene, call the cops and if all else fails, punch him in the balls" -- this was one of the posts.
In another post, he shared a picture of a trans-rights demonstration accompanied by the caption “a photo you can smell”.
“I hate them. Misogynists and homophobes. F*** em," another post read.
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