British far-right extremist Tommy Robinson arrives in Dublin and says he ‘invited himself’

Robinson claims he has been drawn to Ireland by a recent spate of anti-immigrant protests, which he has warmly praised and the Irish far-right agitators who are helping to organise them.

In a video posted on the social media site Telegram, Robinson said nobody had “invited” him to Dublin.

“I just need to make something very clear,” he states in a message shared on the social media channel.

“(I’m) reading that lots of journalists, lots of politicians, lots of far left extremists (are) all saying I've been invited here to Dublin.

“I haven’t been invited anywhere. I’m a journalist.

"I go where the news is. No one’s invited me. No one’s accommodated me. I go and ask questions and put together a piece, to show what's happening. That’s my job, thank you.”

According to independent.ie, Robinson, a founder of the English Defence League, a far-right Islamophobic organisation, has been welcomed to Ireland by far-right conspiracy theorist Dee Wall, who spread misinformation during the pandemic.

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In a lengthy live-stream on her social media profile on Tuesday night, Ms Wall praised Robinson and said she would give him “100 blessings to come here”. She said she would personally welcome him to Ireland.

“Men in Ireland claim to have two balls – where were they all the way through the lockdown when the elderly were being genocided?” she said.

“Where were these men? They couldn’t even come up to have one ball as big as Tommy Robinson’s.”

Robinson, who has been banned from most major social media platforms at one time or another, was previously kicked off Facebook for “dehumanising language and calls for violence targeted at Muslims”.

Robinson’s real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon. Last year, he lost a libel case taken against him by a Syrian schoolboy who was filmed being attacked at school.

During her live-stream, Ms Wall said she would be proud to have Robinson as a son, and staunchly defended him from a number of her followers who questioned whether a British loyalist should be welcomed by Ireland’s far right.

She also suggested that Robinson, who previously said that he went out on St Patrick’s Day wearing an “England top”, might be invited back to Dublin on March 17 by anti-immigration activists.

Far-right Telegram channels, many of which are currently devoted to organising anti-immigration protests around the country, are divided on whether Robinson’s visit will be helpful to their cause.

It is understood the matter of his visit prompted some disagreements among demonstrators who protested outside RTÉ earlier this week. Many far-right activists strongly identify as republicans and are uncomfortable with the inclusion of Robinson in their movement.

But Derek Blighe, a Corkman who live-streams his far-right political views, argued that Robinson “wants to protect his country in the same way I want to protect my country”.

Mr Blighe, a regular presence at anti-immigration protests across the country, claimed that if Robinson wanted to come to Ireland to film the “success” of the Irish anti-immigration movement, “I have no problem with that”.

“If Tommy Robinson wants to come over here and learn some new tricks and get some footage, maybe make a documentary, I have no problem with that.”