Mark Roberts (streaker)

Mark Roberts is a British streaker who has run naked during numerous international events. Roberts' streaking began when he saw a news report about a female streaker at a 1993 Rugby Sevens game in Hong Kong. After a bet in a bar, he went naked in front of the crowd himself the next day.[1]

Mark Roberts
Mark Roberts streaking at the Hong Kong Sevens Rugby tournament in March 1994, his second streak at the tournament.
Born	Mark Roberts Liverpool, United Kingdom
Years active	1993–present
Known for	Streaking

Roberts has done this, as of 2018, 565 times in 23 countries, targeting such events as Hamilton Race Course, a Mr. Universe contest, a Miss World contest, tennis matches, the bull run in Pamplona, the synchronized swimming world championship in Barcelona, and his specialty, association football matches.[2] According to Roberts, he was mandated to surrender his passport whenever an English football team played abroad following a 2001 conviction for streaking. It is unclear how long this mandate was in place.[3]

One famous streak was on a live 1995 broadcast of This Morning, where he swam onto Fred Talbot's floating weather map and proceeded to emulate Talbot's trademark leap from Scotland to Ireland.[4]

A 2002 advertisement created by the ad agency Dimension (Spain) for Spanish sportswear company Athletic Bilbao featured Mark Roberts streaking fully clothed during a nude football game.[5] It won a bronze award at the 2003 Cannes Festival.[6]

In January 2003, Roberts flew to San Diego, California, United States, where he planned to streak at the Super Bowl XXXVII. He was unable to get tickets to that game, but succeeded next year on Super Bowl XXXVIII, in Houston, Texas. Just before the start of the second half, he ran onto the field disguised as a referee, undressed, and performed a little dance wearing only a thong. Tackled by members of the New England Patriots and Carolina Panthers, as well as by police and security, he was taken into custody. In June 2004 he was given a fine of $1000 for trespassing.[7]

Roberts planned on retiring by streaking at the 2006 World Cup final in Germany, but was stopped before he could enter the stadium. Later on, in 2007 Roberts ran out on the field of Wembley Stadium during the NFL's first regular season game outside of North America between the New York Giants and Miami Dolphins. The very next year, Roberts struck again, this time in the final of the 2008 World Snooker Championship between Ronnie O'Sullivan and Ali Carter. He did so previously at the same venue in 2004.

In March 2010 Roberts was seen sporting a cat-shaped mask over his genitals at Crufts.[8]

In 2011 the artist Benedikt Dichgans hired Roberts to streak in Tate Britain and at the Turner Prize but it ended in arrest.[9][10] He was also featured in the 2011 Banksy-produced documentary, The Antics Roadshow.

In 2013, he was subject of the Channel 4 documentary Streak! The Man Who Can't Keep His Clothes On. He announced his forthcoming retirement but not before one last streak.[11]

In 2018, Mark Roberts made his first appearance since 2013 by taking to the ice at the Gangneung Oval on Friday in nothing but a pink tutu and skimpy underwear during the 2018 Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea. As soon as the men's 1,000-meter speed skating medal ceremony concluded, Roberts took to the ice with the words "peace and love" emblazoned across his bare chest.[12]