TV writer Graham Linehan’s arrest over transgender posts sparks free speech outcry in the UK

LONDON (AP) – The co-creator of British TV sitcoms “Father Ted” and the “IT Crowd” said he was arrested over a series of posts about transgender people.

Graham Linehan, 57, said he was arrested Monday at Heathrow Airport after arriving from Arizona. The Metropolitan Police didn’t name Linehan but said it had arrested a man at the airport on suspicion of inciting violence in posts on X.

Linehan, who is well known for posts asserting that trans women are men, has misgendered trans women and suggested in an April post that they are criminals who should be denounced.

Conservative members of Parliament condemned the arrest.

“Britain used to be known for its sense of humor,” Conservative MP Claire Coutinho said. “Now the police are arresting people for making jokes.”

Linehan said in a post on Substack that the questioning by police sent his blood pressure soaring and he was taken to the hospital and kept under observation before being released on bail. He said the only condition for his release was that he could not post on X.

He is due to appear Thursday in Westminster Magistrates’ Court on a separate case in which he is accused of harassing a transgender woman and damaging her phone. He has denied the charge.