Photo: re:publica from Germany · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Born in Ireland · Nationality Irish — Culture / television / freedom of expression / gender debates / justice
Documented profile covering 11 controversies, including “May 2026: criminal damage conviction overturned on appeal and not-guilty verdict entered” and “July 2026: Metropolitan Police apologise and pay £25,000 compensation for Heathrow arrest”.
Profile No. 2710 · Updated on 12 October 2026
§ Legal statuses reflect the documented sources as of the date shown; they replace neither court decisions nor the presumption of innocence. Counts are not a rating. Methodology
Case · 4 documented stages
1 May 2026
The High Court, sitting with magistrates at Southwark Crown Court, overturned the criminal damage conviction, finding that it could not be certain that Linehan had caused the damage to the phone.
Last verified: 14 September 2026
October 2024–November 2025
Linehan was prosecuted for harassment over a series of posts targeting Sophia Brooks before and after their confrontation. The prosecution argued that the messages went beyond mere irritation and became oppressive.
Last verified: 14 September 2026
25 November 2025
Westminster Magistrates' Court acquitted Linehan of harassment but found him guilty of damaging Brooks's phone and imposed a £500 fine.
Last verified: 14 September 2026
19 October 2024
Outside the Battle of Ideas conference in Westminster, Linehan confronted Sophia Brooks, then aged 17. He acknowledged taking and throwing her phone but disputed causing the damage later alleged.
Last verified: 14 September 2026
9 July 2026
The Metropolitan Police paid Linehan £25,000 and apologised for the handling of the investigation, arrest and bail conditions following the Heathrow incident.
Last verified: 14 September 2026
2 September 2025
On arriving at Heathrow from the United States, Linehan was arrested by armed police over three posts on X relating to transgender people, suspected of encouraging violence.
Last verified: 14 September 2026
20 October 2025
Authorities confirmed that no criminal proceedings would follow from the investigation into the messages that had prompted his arrest at Heathrow.
Last verified: 14 September 2026
15–16 August 2023
Leith Arches cancelled a Comedy Unleashed show after learning that Linehan was on the bill, stating that his presence did not align with the venue's inclusive values.
Last verified: 14 September 2026
17 August 2023
A second venue declined to host the show. The event was eventually held outdoors outside the Scottish Parliament, turning the controversy into a national debate about artistic freedom and discrimination.
Last verified: 14 September 2026
2018–2020
Linehan became highly active in opposing certain aspects of transgender activism and gender self-identification, progressively changing his public image and provoking numerous conflicts on social media.
Last verified: 14 September 2026
June 2020
Twitter permanently suspended the @glinner account, citing repeated breaches of its rules against hateful conduct and platform manipulation.
Last verified: 14 September 2026
No documented link with another published profile for now.
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