Steve Bray

Steve Bray was born 26 June 1969[1] and was originally from Splott in Cardiff, South Wales.[15] As a child, Bray was an Army brat.[16] Before becoming involved in political activism, Bray himself served in the British Army[17] and was a self-employed numismatist, working in Port Talbot, South Wales.[18]

Bray wears a European Blue jacket, with a blue top-hat with a yellow hat-band. He has a cape made up from a Union Jack sewn into an EU flag. He carries two double sided, burgundy coloured, A2 sized, placards with the messages "Stop the BREXIT mess," "We want a people's vote," and "Things have changed, it is time to reassess".[6]

In March 2017, Prime Minister Theresa May triggered Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, formally initiating Britain's withdrawal from the European Union, following the result of the 2016 advisory referendum on the UK's EU membership. Bray was incensed, leaving Port Talbot and travelling to London to protest.[19] Bray paid £8,500 to have a float carrying a larger than life size model of Theresa May's head with a pistol marked with the word "Brexit" in its mouth to be brought to the UK.[20] Bray also received press coverage for his Westminster protest in November 2017.[21]

Camera teams from all news sources interview politicians on College Green, outside the Houses of Parliament. When Bray spots a team arriving, he walks over, and as the live interview begins, he quietly walks into the background of the shot, displaying his posters. As the camera moves, so does he, remaining in the frame. He then walks off before the team can ask the police to remove him. With a two camera interview, he knows which camera is live and moves from one to the other as needed. In an incident on 14 November 2018 with Georgina Wright and Annita McVeigh, the camera hopping lasted over two minutes.[22]

Steve Bray standing in front of the Sky TV Media Tent during an interview between Kay Burley and Labour MP Chris Bryant, on the day that Jeremy Corbyn called a vote of no confidence.

When the camera team chooses to film against the door of the Palace, Bray uses another tactic. He stands close by and shouts 'Stop Brexit' over a loudhailer, ruining the sound track.[6] On 19 October 2019 he was clearly heard to yell during a live TV interview ‘bollocks to Boris’ after the Brexit deal the Prime Minister proposed was not agreed by parliament.

The BBC tried to circumvent Bray's disruption by building a five-metre-high (16 ft) platform on which to conduct interviews. Bray was not deterred and raised the EU flag on a 5-metre-high pole, which could be seen waving behind the presenter.[23][24]

Every evening at around 6pm, he performs another ritual, approaching the Palace and shouting "Stop Brexit, it's not a done deal" before leaving.[25] He returns at 11 the following morning and states he will continue to do so until another referendum is called.[8]

In January 2019, Bray moved into an apartment opposite the Westminster home of Conservative Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg. In order to rent the property in Westminster's Cowley Street for two months, he raised more than £12,000 from the public.[4] In response to the news of his new neighbour, Rees-Mogg said: "Should he wish to borrow a cup of sugar, he would be very welcome."[4]

Regular SODEM protestors; Steve Bray in his post election grey attire, December 2019

Steve Bray was the Liberal Democrat candidate for the Cynon Valley constituency in the 2019 United Kingdom general election. The Liberal Democrat leader, Jo Swinson, noted that Bray was a passionate campaigner and should not be seen as a joke candidate.[26] He came 6th of 7 candidates with 949 votes, 3.1% of the total, and lost his deposit.[27] Madeline Grant, writing in The Daily Telegraph, argued that the Liberal Democrats' decision to run Bray, whom she did not see as a serious candidate, was part of their disastrous campaign.[28]

Bray described the Conservative victory in the 2019 General Election as "devastating." Shortly after the result, he acknowledged that the chances of the UK remaining in the EU were "tiny" and offered that "we are all going to end up in hell after Brexit happens." Bray decided to end his daily protests after 847 days.[29][30]

January 2020, in support of EU Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen on the occasion of her London visit.

On 31 January 2020, the United Kingdom became the first member state to leave the EU.[31] In response, Bray vowed to continue protesting outside Parliament, noting that he would "not give up" until the UK rejoined the EU.[32] In view of this, Bray has been likened to a Japanese soldier fighting on many years after the end of World War II.[33]

On 18 January, Bray was tripped up and assaulted in central London suffering minor injuries. He described the alleged assailants as "unpleasant thugs masquerading as Brexit zealots" and noted that "they’re not real Brexiteers or leavers." No arrests were made at the time.[34][35]

By the Autumn of 2020, Bray was still protesting but had discarded his anti-Brexit top hat and cape in favour of a Soviet tank general's parade dress. Armed with a portable stereo, Bray took to blaring out the national anthem of the former USSR.[15]

SODEM is a political movement founded by Steve Bray in September 2017. It is an acronym for Stand of Defiance European Movement, and its colours are yellow on blue. A previous action was to secretly place the European flag on an empty flagpole outside the Neath Port Talbot council offices on 19 August 2018.[36]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Steve Bray (activist).

• SODEM website
• "Anti-Brexit protester repeatedly crashes live BBC news interviews – video". The Guardian. 14 November 2018. Retrieved 2 December 2018.
• Hogan, Michael (27 October 2019). "Anti-Brexit activist Steve Bray: 'This is my first protest – it's lasted two years'". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 October 2019.