Silverstone protest: Six plead not guilty to causing public nuisance at British Grand Prix

Six people have appeared in court following a track protest at Silverstone during the British Grand Prix earlier this year.

David Baldwin, aged 46, from Witney, Emily Brockebank, aged 24, from Leeds, Alasdair Gibson, aged 21, from Aberdeen, Louis McKechnie, aged 21, from Manchester, Bethany Mogie, aged 40, from St Albans, and Joshua Smith, aged 28, from Manchester, all appeared at Northampton Crown Court on Friday, October 28.

All six defendants entered not guilty pleas to the two charges of conspiring with others to cause a public nuisance and causing a public nuisance.

Prosecuting the case is Simon Jones and defending Brocklebank, Gibson, McKechnie and Smith is Raj Chada. Mogie and Baldwin are currently representing themselves.

A trial date was set for Monday, January 23, 2023, and the case was allocated to High Court judge Mr Justice Neil Garnham.

The defendants will all appear at Northampton Crown Court on Monday, December 12, for a pre-trial review.

McKechnie and Smith were remanded into custody, while the other defendants were released on bail.

Seven people were arrested following a protest at Silverstone Circuit during the British Grand Prix on Sunday, July 3.

The race itself got off to a dramatic start with a crash that saw Zhou Guanyu’s car flip and a red flag raised to stop the race.

During the stop, seven protesters wearing orange jumpsuits entered the track.

Eyewitnesses at the course say they were “dragged off” by security and police.

Northamptonshire Police later confirmed that seven people were arrested and placed in custody. The force said it offered to “facilitate a peaceful event” at the circuit after receiving intelligence two days prior that a protest was planned.

In a statement, officers pleaded: “Going onto a live racetrack is extremely dangerous – if you go ahead with this reckless plan you’re jeopardising lives.”

Environmental activist group Just Stop Oil claimed responsibility for the protest. The group tweeted: “If you are more outraged about this disruption than our world being burnt before our eyes, then you need to get your priorities straight.”