For supporters of Belfast rap trio Kneecap it was, as the handwritten sign slapped on the wall of Westminster Magistrates Court suggested, a “grand day out for the parish”.
Hundreds of the band’s fans and a noisy legion of pro-Palestinian activists, many of them Irish, waved Tricolours and thronged the front of the court on Wednesday morning in advance of a hearing in the case of band member Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh.
The regular court reporters said they had never witnessed a scene like it. “It’s never been this doolally, not even when they held the Julian Assange case here,” said one.
Ó hAnnaidh, whose stage name is Mo Chara, was charged under UK antiterrorism legislation with showing support for a proscribed organisation.
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It was alleged he draped himself in a Hizbullah flag at a London gig last November and shouted “up Hamas, up Hizbullah”, referring to the Palestinian and Lebanese militant groups respectively.
Ó hAnnaidh did not enter a plea and was released on bail, as the case was adjourned in advance of a hearing on August 20th over the court’s jurisdiction to hear the case.
Meanwhile, the crowd outside the court spilt out on to Marylebone Road as musicians and supporters of the rapper set up a makeshift stage at the door for an impromptu gig in the sunshine.
Strains of Aslan’s Crazy World and the Waterboys’ Fisherman’s Blues rolled through the warm air in the streets of the fashionable west London district.
Inside the court building, things were also hotting up. Harried court staff seemed stunned by the size of the crowd that had descended. Journalists jostled for the Willy Wonka golden tickets distributed for seats in the small press area of Court Number 1, where Ó hAnnaidh was due to appear before a magistrate. It was near bedlam.
His case was listed for 10am but it was almost 11am before it got going as court staff wrangled the crowds. Most remained outside the courthouse. A long queue formed outside Court 1 – just 30 would be allowed into the public gallery as reporters wailed for more tickets.
One elderly Irish woman wearing a Palestinian keffiyeh around her neck said she had left home at 3am to get to the airport to fly over.
Film-maker Jim Sheridan was among those in the first-floor lobby seeking entry to the hearing. He told The Irish Times that he was a friend of Ó hAnnaidh – “a lovely lad” – and he was there to defend freedom of speech.
Sinn Féin Westminster MPs John Finucane and Paul Maskey also showed up. A rumour also went around that veteran musician Paul Weller was outside, and sure enough, there he was.
Ó hAnnaidh, dressed in black, and other Kneecap members showed up just after 10am. DJ Próvaí, real name JJ Ó Dochartaigh, had removed his trademark Tricolour balaclava for the occasion. Pro-Palestine chants echoed up the stairs from the crowd below.
Ó hAnnaidh sat alone in the dock as the magistrate in the juryless court confirmed his name and address. His legal team, led by barrister Brenda Campbell, suggested to the magistrate that the charge on which Ó hAnnaidh had been brought before the court was a day beyond a six-month statute of limitations. If accepted this would have ended the case on the spot, the magistrate said.
The prosecution, led by Michael Bisgrove, said they would contest that the charge was out of date and a hearing was fixed for August 20th on this issue.
If after that the case still goes ahead, Ó hAnnaidh will enter a plea. If – and he has already indicated publicly that he will fight the charge – he pleads not guilty, then a trial will take place at a later date.
Ó hAnnaidh’s legal team indicated that the rapper, whose band performs partly in Irish, might need an Irish interpreter for the trial. The magistrate said the court had so far been unable to find one. “If anyone knows of one….” he said, his voice trailing off.
A woman in the public gallery could be heard laughing as she pointed at Ó hAnnaidh’s bandmates. Kneecap rapper Móglaí Bap, real name Naoise Ó Cairealláin, put his head in his hands and sniggered.
“I think we will manage in English” for the August hearing of legal argument, said Campbell. The magistrate promised to have an Irish interpreter for later hearings and adjourned the case.
There was more bedlam and a crush outside as Ó hAnnaidh and his bandmates emerged from the courthouse.
Watching police stood back as red smoke flares were let off.
After a few words reasserting support for Palestine, Ó hAnnaidh proceeded down the street.
The crowd thinned and plush Marylebone started to get back to normal.
