David Icke

David Icke
Icke in 2013
Born
David Vaughan Icke

(1952-04-29) 29 April 1952 (age 72)
Leicester, England
Occupation(s)Conspiracy theorist,[1] former sports broadcaster and football player
Political partyGreen Party (1980s-1991)
MovementNew Age conspiracism
Websitedavidicke.com

David Vaughan Icke (/vɔːn aɪk/ vawn iyk; born 29 April 1952) is an English conspiracy theorist and a former footballer and sports broadcaster.[1][2][3][4][5] He has written over 20 books, self-published since the mid-1990s, and spoken in more than 25 countries.[6][7][8]

In 1990, Icke visited a psychic who told him he was on Earth for a purpose and would receive messages from the spirit world.[9] This led him to claim in 1991 to be a "Son of the Godhead"[5] and that the world would soon be devastated by tidal waves and earthquakes. He repeated this on the BBC show Wogan.[10][11] His appearance led to public ridicule.[12] Books Icke wrote over the next 11 years developed his world view of a New Age conspiracy.[13] Reactions to his endorsement of an antisemitic fabrication, The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, in The Robots' Rebellion (1994) and in And the Truth Shall Set You Free (1995) led his then publisher to decline further books, and he has self-published since then.[8]

Icke contends that the universe consists of "vibrational" energy and infinite dimensions sharing the same space.[14][15][16] He claims that there is an inter-dimensional race of reptilian beings, the Archons or Anunnaki, which have hijacked the Earth. Further, a genetically modified human–Archon hybrid race of reptilian shape-shifters – the Babylonian Brotherhood, Illuminati or "elite" – manipulate events to keep humans in fear, so that the Archons can feed off the resulting "negative energy".[14][17][18][19] He claims that many public figures belong to the Babylonian Brotherhood and propel humanity towards a global fascist state or New World Order, a post-truth era ending freedom of speech.[13][14][20][21] He sees the only way to defeat such "Archontic" influence is for people to wake up to the truth and fill their hearts with love.[14]

Critics have accused Icke of being antisemitic and a Holocaust denier, due to his endorsement of The Protocols of the Elders of Zion as well as his identification of the Jewish Rothschild family as reptilians, with his theories of reptilians being alleged to serve as a deliberate "code", something which Icke has denied.[22][23][24][25][26][27][28] The allegations of antisemitism and promotion of misinformation has resulted in him being banned from entering a number of countries.[22][23][24]

  1. ^ a b Barkun, Michael (2011). Chasing Phantoms: Reality, Imagination, and Homeland Security Since 9/11. University of North Carolina Press. p. 72. ISBN 978-0807877692.
  2. ^ "Conspiracy Theories — The Reptilian Elite". Time. 20 November 2008. ISSN 0040-781X. Retrieved 17 December 2018.
  3. ^ Doherty, Rosa (17 December 2018). "Acclaimed author Alice Walker recommends book by notorious conspiracy theorist David Icke". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 17 December 2018 – via thejc.com.
  4. ^ Shabi, Rachel (27 November 2018). "How David Icke helped unite Labour's factions against antisemitism". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 17 December 2018.
  5. ^ a b Bowlin, Ben; Fredrick, Matt; Brown, Noel (10 February 2017). "David Icke and the Rise of the Lizard People". stufftheydontwantyoutoknow.com (Podcast). Retrieved 3 March 2017.
  6. ^ Lewis & Kahn 2010, p. 75.
  7. ^ Robertson 2016, p. 121.
  8. ^ a b Offley, Will (29 February 2000). "David Icke And The Politics Of Madness Where The New Age Meets The Third Reich". Political Research Associates. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  9. ^ Icke, David (1991). The Truth Vibrations. pp. 15–18.
  10. ^ Icke 1993, pp. 192–194.
  11. ^ Ronson, Jon (2001). Them: Adventures with Extremists. London: Picador. pp. 152–154. ISBN 9780743227070.
  12. ^ Evans, Paul (3 March 2008). "Interview: David Icke". New Statesman. NS Media Group. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  13. ^ a b Barkun 2003, p. 103.
  14. ^ a b c d Cite error: The named reference WardNH was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  15. ^ Cite error: The named reference Doyle17Feb2006 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  16. ^ Icke 1999, pp. 26–27.
  17. ^ Lewis & Kahn 2010, p. 82.
  18. ^ Icke 1999, pp. 19–25, 40.
  19. ^ Lynskey, Dorian (6 November 2014). "Psycho lizards from Saturn: The godlike genius of David Icke!". New Statesman. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  20. ^ Cite error: The named reference Neil20May2016 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  21. ^ Widdas, Henry (17 April 2018). "Being 'red-pilled' by David Icke has never been so entertaining... and terrifying". Lancashire Evening Post. Retrieved 15 June 2018.
  22. ^ a b Hume, Tim (4 November 2022). "'Lizard Elite' Conspiracy Theorist Banned from 26 European Countries". Vice. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  23. ^ a b Karp, Paul (20 February 2019). "Conspiracy theorist David Icke hits back after Australia revokes visa". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  24. ^ a b "David Icke: Conspiracy theorist banned from Netherlands". 4 November 2022. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  25. ^ Cite error: The named reference off was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  26. ^ Cite error: The named reference RosenbergTab was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  27. ^ Cite error: The named reference DW Berlin was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  28. ^ Allington, Daniel; Buarque, Beatriz L; Barker Flores, Daniel (February 2021). "Antisemitic conspiracy fantasy in the age of digital media: Three 'conspiracy theorists' and their YouTube audiences". Language and Literature: International Journal of Stylistics. 30 (1): 78–102. doi:10.1177/0963947020971997. ISSN 0963-9470.