Pride festival criticised for ‘throw milkshake over Farage’ game

A Pride festival is facing a backlash for hosting a game of “toss a milkshake over Nigel Farage”, with critics accusing organisers of inciting violence.

The game was set up by the Chesterfield and North Derbyshire branch of Stand up to Racism, at their stall at Chesterfield Pride, which took place on Sunday (21 July).

The game allowed festival-goers to pick from different coloured sponges, representing different flavours of milkshake. and throw them at a cardboard cut-out of the controversial Reform UK leader.

Anyone hitting the cut-out likeness received a prize.

Farage has twice had milkshakes thrown on him, once in 2019 in Newcastle and again in June of this year while on the general election campaign trail for the Clacton seat, in Essex, which he subsequently won.

Speaking to the Derbyshire Times, Richard McAllister, who did not attend the event but says he saw a picture of the stall online – criticised the game, saying organisers “should never have allowed this” and that the game “incited violence” towards Farage.

“I think it’s particularly unacceptable after the assassination attempt on former President Trump,” he told the newspaper. “It’s pernicious. The police seem to have had lots of eyes on the ground and they should have picked this up.

“The law has to be applied equally to everyone, we can’t have them turning a blind eye to any threat of violence. This is not how liberal democracy works.”

Others took to social media to also share their anger. “As a gay man, I find it utterly pathetic that you would put up the Nigel Farage attraction mocking somebody who was physically attacked on more than one occasion,” one man wrote underneath one of Chesterfield Pride’s Facebook posts.

Another wrote: “Chesterfield Pride is supposed to unite not divide. So, it’s no longer about supporting gay rights but rather a political movement. Are gay people not allowed to agree with Farage on certain topics?”

Stand Up Against Racism Chesterfield and North Derbyshire, described the stall as “light-hearted” and “harmless fun”.

A spokesperson for the group told the Derbyshire Times that they “like to think it’s the sort of game that Nigel himself would smile at”, adding: “He is surely aware that, although four million people voted for him, many more object to his views on LGBT rights, women’s rights and migrants.

“Nobody was harmed and many people had a good laugh and welcomed our presence. Some community police officers did stroll past but clearly thought it was harmless fun too.

“The spirit of Chesterfield Pride is a joyful day out in defence of a serious cause. That was the spirit of the game.”

Chesterfield Pride said the event takes an anti-homophobic and anti-racist stance but declined to comment on the stall.

The police confirmed that one complaint had been lodged but after a review by a sergeant, it was deemed that no laws had been broken and “no further action is being taken”.