Raise the Colours: Who are the playground bullies plaguing British streets? 

HOPE not hate reveals the key figures behind Raise the Colours, exposing their criminal histories and their intimidation of local people. 

Unite the Kingdom attendees were surprised with some pre-protest entertainment last Saturday, when the chief flag-enthusiast of Raise the Colours (RTC), Ryan Bridge, was arrested outside Euston station. 

This followed a hit-and-run incident in Stirchley where a 33-year-old was hospitalised with a broken leg. On the same evening, there was a series of disputes between the RTC team and Stirchley locals. Bridge and a second man arrested in connection to the case have since been released on bail. 

Despite having emerged onto the far-right scene less than a year ago, Bridge and his team have earned several regional bans, multiple arrests and a bad reputation amongst local people. 

The group’s own social media accounts show the RTC team hurling verbal abuse, spitting in the street, driving recklessly, and physically intimidating locals, including women.

Following on from HOPE not hate’s recent exposé on Bridge’s fall out with former colleague Daniel Thomas (AKA Danny Tommo), this article exposes the RTC team, whose recent violent actions in Stirchley have attracted attention.

Who is Ryan Bridge? 

Ryan Bridge is a Birmingham-born activist who came onto the far-right scene last summer. He co-founded RTC with Elliot Stanley as a Birmingham-based collective in response to a broader decentralised flagging movement begun by former English Defence League member Andy Currien. 

Bridge boasts a history of football violence, which includes a three year ban. He previously described himself as being fascinated by the “violent side” of football during his teenage years. To Bridge, these “fucking brilliant” fights are “the best buzz in the world… better than anything”. 

In 2018, The Mirror reported that Bridge was wanted by the Spanish police force for his alleged part in a scheme encouraging tourists to make false insurance claims. The Mirror claimed that scams of this sort have cost hotels in Majorca and its neighbouring islands over £40 million. 

Despite his dodgy past, Bridge became the figurehead for RTC and began a concentrated flag campaign in the Midlands in mid-2025. Our press briefing outlines the failure of his partnership with Danny Thomas in “Operation Overlord”’” and the subsequent ban from France placed on Bridge and his colleagues. Our recent exposé of leaked voice notes between Bridge and Thomas in early January also detail the violent threats and subsequent fall-out between the pair.

With a leading member down and a blanket ban on entering France, Bridge returned to UK-based activism in the spring of 2026 and has since proven himself to be a local bully. 

During a conflict in Stirchley, Bridge filmed himself running down a street, referring to a group ahead of him which he suspected were removing flags as “cunts”. At one point, he publicly spat on the street. 

He hurled verbal abuse at one man, childishly mocking his appearance, and shushed other members of the public who attempted to challenge him. He reduced himself to playground insults, and began walking through locals, telling them aggressively to “move”. 

Despite his claims of “legally and lawfully”, Bridge seemed aware that his team were dancing on legislative lines; he urged his team to leave in the clip, warning “we’re gonna get nicked”. 

Some of the team, including Bridge, bundled themselves into a car. They proceeded to speed through Stirchley, with none of them wearing seatbelts. So much for “legally and lawfully”. 

Oxford and beyond

Throughout the start of the year, Bridge ferried his small team, manned with a rented cherry picker, around the country to raise flags. Their social media features pages and pages of Bridge arguing with locals in each location, he and his teammates squaring up to any members of the public who dared to challenge their flagging campaign. 

On 30 March, Oxfordshire County Council issued a formal legal notice to RTC, requiring them to stop flagging in the area. The head of the Council described RTC’s activity as “an act of intimidation and division that is having a real and damaging impact on our communities”. 

Only days later, on 2 April, Bridge was arrested on suspicion of religiously and racially aggravated harassment. He was released on bail the following day, and was banned from entering Oxfordshire as part of his bail conditions. 

However, this still did not dampen his spirit. Bridge and his team joined up with the organisers of the annual Solihull St George’s day parade on 25 April, much to the dismay of many local attendees. 

“Legally and lawfully”

While Bridge has a selection of terrible catchphrases, one of his most regular is that he and his team act “legally and lawfully”. However, a quick investigation shows his team has little concern for the law. 

Ben Cullen 

Ben Cullen is an RTC member from Oxford who in 2019 pepper sprayed a man in a pub garden because he felt he had been wrongly accused of stealing a bike. The attack occurred within the vicinity of other pubgoers, including children, and a staff member on her break vomited due to the noxious fumes. Witnesses described hearing “shouts of pain” from members of the public in the garden. 

The Oxford Mail reported that Cullen also has previous convictions for weapons and violence, including possession of a firearm. In court, Cullen’s lawyer claimed that during 2019, he was in a “downward spiral” in which he was drinking heavily and, according to reports, “taking £300 of cocaine a day”. 

Jordan Wheatley

Jordan Wheatley, from Stafford, was given a one year and 10 month suspended sentence in 2018 for his part in a West Midlands drugs gang channelling heroin and crack cocaine into the streets of Stafford. 

Billy Allison

Billy Allison, from Solihull, took over Bridge’s social media for the day when he was arrested last week. Functioning as a sort of wingman to Bridge, Allison has been a significant part of the group’s intimidating presence. During the conflict in Stirchley, Allison can be overheard telling a man repeatedly “put that phone down, let’s go for a walk”.

Billy is also one of the original members of Raise the Colours who was part of ‘Operation Overlord’. He went with Bridge and Tommo to Calais, where the team harassed asylum seekers and the charity workers assisting them. 

Mark Keating

Mark Keating, known to the team as “Big Mark”, is RTC’s head of security. HOPE not hate have identified him in a video where he was filmed attempting to pull a man’s facemask off, aggressively trying to slap someone’s phone out their hand and finally pulling the mask off a woman’s face in Stirchley last week. Keating then went on to physically intimidate others, and has given himself a reputation as Bridge’s rescuer, stepping in to protect Ryan when locals respond to his goading. 

Julian Joseph Keane (AKA Elon)

Unlike the rest of the team, JJ or ‘Elon’, real name Julian Joseph Keane, has some history within the movement. 

During 2025, Keane organised protest efforts against the use of the Ramada Hotel in Sutton Coldfield as accommodation for asylum seekers. He hosted a go fund me for the cause, and now serves mainly as RTC’s driver. The majority of clips online show Bridge barking orders at Keane, including telling him to drive off while they are being spoken to by police. 

Bridge has claimed in recent posts that as part of his bail conditions, he is not allowed to speak to “Elon”. 

Brummie bullies

Bridge and his team have proven to be thuggish bullies, prepared to row with anybody who dares challenge their flagging campaign – be that an elderly man or teenage girls. Even in areas where locals do not object to the flag itself, RTC’s recklessness and aggression still ensure many feel uncomfortable with their presence. 

These men will try to claim they are “legal and lawful”, that they are saving the streets from dangerous migrants. In reality, they are hypocrites with criminal histories and a growing confidence in intimidating locals.