Bob Vylan frontman claims BBC staff congratulated him on ‘fantastic’ Glastonbury performance
In an interview with Louis Theroux, Pascal Robinson-Foster also rejected claims that the band's statements had led to a rise in antisemitism
The front-man of the “Bob Vylan” punk-rock band has claimed that BBC staff complimented him on his Glastonbury performance – raising further questions for the Corporation which failed to pull the live feed on a show which its own Complaints Unit has subsequently described as antisemitic.
In an interview with Louis Theroux for the latter’s podcast, the singer, whose real name is Pascal Robinson-Foster, said: “We come off stage. It’s normal. Nobody thought anything. Nobody. Even staff at the BBC were like ‘That was fantastic! We loved that!’.” When Theroux suggested that any band coming off stage might receive such responses, Robinson-Foster said: “but that was like, this was a couple hours later because it took us a little while to get back. Nobody at the BBC at that time was there like, ‘oh my gosh’. You know?”
During Bob Vylan’s Glastonbury set, the frontman had entered into a diatribe about a “Zionist” producer he had formerly worked with, as well as leading the Glastonbury crowd in chants of “Death death death to the IDF”.
Last month, the BBC Executive Complaints Unit (ECU) described how “the content of this act, taken in the round, can fairly be characterised as antisemitic”. It said that “References to ‘Free Palestine’ and ‘From the river to the sea’, while viewed by some as implying the disappearance of the state of Israel, can also be regarded as no more than expressions of support for aspirations to a Palestinian state and do not of themselves threaten violent action”, followed by saying that “’Death, death to the IDF’ is clearly more problematic, but it is directed at an institution rather than individuals, and one which is not defined by ethnic or religious composition.
“However, it occurred in a context coloured by the earlier comments about the record company boss, which seemed to the ECU to have the effect (whether intended or not) of evoking a certain stereotype of Jewish influence in the entertainment industry. Although Bob Vylan referred to ‘Zionists’ rather than ‘Jews’, that appeared to the ECU to be a distinction with very little difference in this instance. The ECU therefore shares the view that the content of this act, taken in the round, can fairly be characterised as antisemitic.”
The BBC has not publicly held any staff members to account for the decision not to pull the live feed of Bob Vylan’s set at Glastonbury, despite the acknowledgement that there were hundreds of Corporation staff at the festival, including senior executives.
In the interview with Theroux, which took place on 1 October – the day before the terror attack on a Manchester Synagogue – Robinson-Foster rejected any suggestion that his comments had led to a rise in antisemitism in the UK. Theroux noted that CST had stated that “29 June [the day after Bob Vylan’s Glastonbury set] saw the highest daily total of anti-Semitic incidents in the first half of 2025.” Vylan responded by questioning what CST were counting as antisemitic incidents, before saying “I don’t think I have created an unsafe atmosphere for the Jewish community. If there were large numbers of people going out and going like ‘Bob Vylan made me do this’. I might go, oof, I’ve had a negative impact here.”
At a concert in September, Robinson-Foster told a crowd “”F**k the Zionists! Get out there and fight them! Get out there and meet them in the street. Get out there and let them know that you do not stand by them”
There is no indication that the terrorist at Heaton Park synagogue was a Bob Vylan fan. The Jewish Representative Council of Greater Manchester and Region, backed by 10 Manchester MPs, has called for the cancellation of a Bob Vylan concert due to be held at the Manchester Academy on 5 November.
Responding to the Theroux-Robinson interview, Jewish Film, TV and music producer, Leo Pearlman, said:
“Louis Theroux has every right to interview whoever he wants, but with that right comes responsibility. When you give a microphone to someone who proudly repeats a genocidal chant that played a part in inspiring attacks on Jews across Britain, you’re not probing hate, you’re amplifying it. And don’t be fooled, this isn’t journalism exploring the edges of free speech, without meaningful challenge it’s complicity dressed up as curiosity. A chant that antisemitic mobs have parroted across the world shouldn’t be given another stage, let alone sympathetic airtime.
“We’ve seen faeces smeared on synagogue doors, Jews mowed down and stabbed to death on our streets, and mobs chanting the same words that rang out from the Glastonbury stage. For Pascal to claim he bears no responsibility is moral cowardice, for Theroux to nod along is moral failure.
“This is what happens when antisemitism becomes fashionable again, when the media treat incitement as an interesting opinion rather than a hate crime. Even when it goosesteps, Jew hate doesn’t always wear a swastika, sometimes it wears a mic and a smirk, and gets invited onto a podcast. The fact that Pascal can celebrate the harm he caused and be rewarded with more exposure says everything about how far the goalposts have shifted for Jews in this country. There is nothing progressive about demanding freedom for Palestinians while defending the right to call for the murder of Jews.”
Danny Cohen, a former Director of BBC Television and Controller of BBC One, said:
“Louis Theroux has chosen to interview a man who made rabidly antisemitic comments on a stage at Glastonbury which was rightly disavowed by the BBC itself as a serious incident of racism.
At one time a penetrating interviewer, Theroux offers only softball questions and even appears to agree with offensive arguments such as claiming that the outrage over the ‘death to the IDF’ chants was ‘deliberately weaponised as a distraction tactic’.
Revealingly, Theroux chooses not to ask Vylan about his statement on stage about working for ‘f***ing Zionists’, in other words Jews. Presumably Theroux avoids this because this overt racism would not fit with his sympathetic approach to Vylan’s poisonous views. A man who once did a great job of interviewing people with extremist and offensive views, Theroux appears to have become one himself. In giving such a soft platform to a man now known for his Jew-hating stage rants Theroux has lost the plot in a very dangerous way.”
The BBC responded to an inquiry about claims that its staff congratulated Bob Vylan on their performance by referring to Jewish News to the statement they issued on 3 July, in which they said:
“We fully understand the strength of feeling regarding Bob Vylan’s live appearance at Glastonbury on the BBC. We deeply regret that such offensive and deplorable behaviour appeared on the BBC and want to apologise to our viewers and listeners and in particular the Jewish community. We are also unequivocal that there can be no place for antisemitism at, or on, the BBC.”
At the time the BBC admitted that “errors were made both in the lead-up to and during Bob Vylan’s appearance”. These included a decision that “compliance risks could be mitigated in real time on the live stream – through the use of language or content warnings – without the need for a delay. This was clearly not the case.
“During the performance, the livestream was monitored in line with the agreed compliance protocols and a number of issues were escalated. Warnings appeared on the stream on two occasions and the editorial team took the decision not to cut the feed. This was an error.”
The BBC also said it had made changes for the future, including: “Any music performances deemed high risk will now not be broadcast live or streamed live;
Editorial Policy support will always be available on site at major music festivals and events, to improve compliance processes and the speed of available advice;
And we will provide more detailed, practical guidance on the threshold for withdrawing a live stream.”
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