Piers Morgan berated a vegan protestor who identifies as ‘Mr Broccoli Head’ today after he refused to explain why a plant-based diet will save the planet in a bizarre TV exchange.
‘Mr Broccoli Head’ was arrested in central London on October 14 as he held a sign saying ‘I’m locally sourced and environmentally friendly’ and shouted ‘Give peas a chance’.
His arrest followed activists from Animal Rebellion staging a sit-down protest in the capital’s famous Smithfield Market, bringing meat trading to a halt.
The anti-meat group are an arm of Exinction Rebellion, the eco-mob behind mass-protests in London last week. With more action set to last until the weekend.
Three Met Police officers pinned ‘Mr Broccoli Head’ against a wall to handcuff and arrest him on Monday, but he was later released without charge.
He today appeared on Good Morning Britain with another Animal Rebellion activist.
‘Mr Broccoli Head’ was arrested in central London on October 14 as he held a sign saying ‘I’m locally sourced and environmentally friendly’ and shouted ‘Give peas a chance’
He today appeared on Good Morning Britain with an activist from the extreme vegan branch of Extinction Rebellion
In a bizarre exchange, he was repeatedly asked what his aims are and whether he ‘identifies as a broccoli’.
Mr Broccoli Head, whose real name is believed to be Roland, simply replied: ‘I’am Mr Broccoli Head. I’m just a humble broccoli. I’ve always been a piece of broccoli.’
Quizzed on what he wanted the government and big businesses to do about climate change, replied: ‘We are in extremely hot water environmentally speaking. It’s going to go pear shaped.’
Mr Broccoli Head is pictured being led away by police officers in central London on Monday
He was berated by hosts Piers Morgan, whom he repeatedly referred to as ‘Peas’, and Susanna Reid, who told him he ‘didn’t know the facts’ and ‘wasn’t taking it seriously’.
Piers said: ‘Why should I listen to you? You’ve brought London to a standstill for two weeks, we give you the chance to come on national television to present your case and you sit there dressed like a broccoli.’
Susanna fumed: ‘It’s a serious point. You’re not going to win anyone over dressed as a broccoli.’
Asked whether he ‘practices what he preaches’ and has electronic gadgets that pollute the environment, the activist replied: ‘I just grow. I’m just a broccoli. I don’t have electricity.’
But a picture of him posted on social media showed he got a taxi to the ITV studios – and not public transport.
After advocating a plant-based diet, the activist was asked why it will save planet, but couldn’t provide an answer.
He said ‘I’m not a scientist’ and ‘a plant based food system is great for the environment’, before his fellow Animal Rebellion activist chimed in: ‘My client is just a broccoli, it’s very easy to cherry pick the science. It’s easy to talk about individual change.’
He was berated by hosts Piers Morgan, which he repeatedly referred to as ‘Peas’, and Susanna Reid, who told him he ‘didn’t know the facts’ and ‘wasn’t taking it seriously’
Activists from Animal Rebellion, an extreme vegan offshoot of the main Extinction Rebellion movement, occupied Smithfield meat market during their two weeks of chaos in London
Martin Daubney MEP branded the plan to transform Smithfield into a ‘plant-based emporium’ as ‘abject nonsense’
Mr Broccoli quickly began trending on Twitter with users unable to believe their eyes
Piers continued to blast the pair claiming they didn’t understand why a plant-based diet would be good for the environment and why they were protesting in the first place.
Mr Broccoli quickly began trending on Twitter with users unable to believe their eyes.
Lord Sugar tweeted to say Mr Broccoli Head will ‘add insult to injury’ by excreting methane in excess if he only eats plants.
He was later pictured with WAG Lizzie Cundy at the Good Morning Britain studios in London.
Activists from Animal Rebellion, an extreme vegan offshoot of the main Extinction Rebellion movement, occupied Smithfield meat market during their two weeks of chaos in London.
Staging a ‘people’s assembly’ with speakers including TV presenter and animal lover Chris Packham, they demanded the Government oust all meat traders from the market and make it exclusively for fruit and veg sellers.
Dozens camped out overnight waiting for traders to arrive in the early hours – only to stop them setting up their stalls and covering them with plant-based food instead.
The protest sparked fury among workers and meat-lovers alike, as many claimed protestors are ‘interfering with people’s livelihoods’.
More than 1,640 climate change protesters have now been arrested over demonstrations that have brought parts of London to a halt.
The Metropolitan Police gave the latest arrest tally as the force faces legal action over a city-wide ban on the Autumn Uprising protests by Extinction Rebellion (XR).
Lawyers for the group are applying for a judicial review of the ban at the High Court on Wednesday after some claimed it was unlawful.
The ban was condemned by the Green Party and Labour, with shadow home secretary Diane Abbott saying it was ‘completely contrary to Britain’s long-held traditions of policing by consent, freedom of speech, and the right to protest’.
Police used section 14 of the Public Order Act to restrict the protest, originally at 12 sites near Westminster, to the pedestrian area of Trafalgar Square.
After what Deputy Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor called ‘continued breaches’ of the order, officers moved in to clear Trafalgar Square on Monday night.
He was later pictured with WAG Lizzie Cundy at the Good Morning Britain studios in London
Under the order, any assembly – a group of more than two people – linked to the Autumn Uprising is unlawful.
Protesters are set to continue defying the ban, with a group of breastfeeding mothers and babies going to the offices of Google and YouTube, and a rally at Trafalgar Square.
Environmental journalist and campaigner George Monbiot was aiming to get arrested at Trafalgar Square.
Julian Thompson from XR said: ‘We have been on the streets to demand that the Government produces a plan to deal with the climate and ecological emergency.
‘The Government’s silence is deafening, with no mention of it in the Queen’s Speech, which is their programme for government for the year.
‘At a time when it’s more important than ever to peacefully assemble and protest on these emergencies, we are now at risk of being silenced by the authorities.
‘This is a dangerous precedent. We need more democracy, not less.’
A Government spokesman said: ‘The UK is already taking world-leading action to combat climate change as the first major economy to legislate to end our contribution to global warming entirely by 2050.
‘While we share people’s concerns about global warming, and respect the right to peaceful protest, it should not disrupt people’s day-to-day lives.’
An Animal Rebellion activist is pictured outside the Bank of England on Monday on the seventh day of their ‘Autumn Uprising’ that has brought chaos to London