Graham Linehan arrested at Heathrow over inciting violence X posts

Graham Linehan, the 57 year old Irish comedy writer best known for co creating Father Ted, was arrested at London Heathrow Airport on Monday on suspicion of inciting violence over a series of posts on the social media platform X, the Metropolitan Police said. Linehan, who had arrived on an inbound American Airlines flight from Arizona, was taken into custody shortly after disembarking, police and the writer’s own account said.

The Metropolitan Police said officers arrested a man in his 50s at about 1pm on Monday after he arrived on an inbound American Airlines flight. The arrest was made on suspicion of inciting violence in relation to posts on X, the force said. After being taken to police custody, officers became concerned for his wellbeing and he was taken to hospital. His condition was described by police as neither life threatening nor life changing. The man has been bailed pending further investigation.

Linehan described the incident in a long post on his Substack, saying he was met as he stepped off the plane by five armed officers, escorted to a private area and told he was under arrest for three tweets. He wrote that he was subsequently detained in a cell, that his...