tten or forgiven. He was indeed a central cheerleader for one of the most grotesque miscarriages of justice in recent British history. He gave a powerful platform to Beech, a convicted liar, fraudster and paedophile, whose falsehoods wrecked lives.
While most journalists viewed Beech’s absurd conspiracy theories with justified scepticism, O’Brien indulged them regularly on his LBC programme (unlike his colleague Iain Dale, who gave unwavering support to me and other victims of Operation Midland at a time when few dared to do so).
He played recordings of Beech on air, praised the disgraced Exaro News for supposedly “schooling” the rest of the media, and accused anyone who expressed doubt of being part of an establishment cover-up. In doing so, he lent moral authority and credibility to a liar who accused distinguished public servants of the most horrific crimes – including D-Day veterans like Lord Bramall, and who falsely implicated me in the most sickening of crimes. Lord Brittan, also accused, did not live to see his name cleared.
I did. Barely. As Douglas Murray so rightly chronicled in The Spectator, O’Brien’s enthusiasm for Beech’s lies was exceptional even among the most credulous. He helped transform what should have been a laughable conspiracy into a national witch-hunt.
One result? I lost my home. I lost my livelihood. I was reduced to living in a converted shed with my partner, three dogs and no running water. At one point, I received so many credible death threats that police advised me to leave my home immediately. I feared not only for my life, but my partner’s too.
But unlike O’Brien, I do not have a radio studio from which to deflect responsibility. I had nothing but the truth, and eventually the truth prevailed, though not before devastating damage had been done.
Yet, when Beech was finally exposed and sentenced to 18 years in prison, what was O’Brien’s response? A tone-deaf tweet in July 2019 lamenting that he had been misled, while still insisting that “telling abuse survivors they’ll be believed” was the right thing to do. No apology. No mention of me, or Lord Bramall, Lord Brittan, or the other victims. Just a self-pitying shrug dressed up as principle….
The offences for which I was convicted in 1987 are no longer offences. The law has changed; society has changed. But O’Brien has not. He continues to peddle moral certainty while refusing to reckon with his own past, a past in which he gave oxygen to falsehood, ruined reputations and incited a witch-hunt with chilling zeal.
I am not the only victim of O’Brien’s actions with regard to Carl Beech – but I am one of the few still alive to respond.
Well said.
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