This was intended to be a re-run of Tower Hamlets – a mission into darkest Muslamic country to liberate a corner of England. In the event around only two hundred fash made the trip down – to be confronted by a multi-racial crowd of over two thousand.

After getting pissed up and fighting amongst themselves at King's Cross station the EDL gathered at Blackhorse Rd tube station. They were then marched in a mobile kettle along Forest Rd, the initial stage of their intended route to the Town Hall. The UAF were behind police lines occupying half of Forest Rd. Autonomous anti-fascists waited just down from the crossroads. The EDL approached at a snail's pace entirely surrounded by cops.

As soon as the hapless leaguers came in sight the Anti-Fascist Network's banner was unveiled – triggering scuffles with the police and a couple of arrests. The cops soon realised that if a handful of anti-fascists were going to cause that much bother then getting the EDL past the UAF demo was going to be more trouble than it was it worth. The answer was to divert the EDL down the side-streets and try to smuggle them to their rally point.

SMASH GAZEBO

Meanwhile, realising that the EDL march had been blocked anti-fascists started breaking away in small groups getting round police lines to the rally point. Soon hundreds had gathered in front of a gazebo decorated with England flags and staffed by the EDL's top boys. Unfortunately for them their minions were being held up by police a few streets away leaving Tommy Robinson and Kev Carroll to have a rally behind police lines that barely got into double figures. After they were bombarded with eggs and bottle and repeated anti-fascist crowd surges the EDL's police liaison officers told them to leave the area. Rumours that Kev and Tommy later indulged in a bit of sulky mutual recrimination and even handbags at dawn have so far been confined to the socialist press.

Eventually the EDL were marched back, remarkably silent for this once vocal organisation. Locals came out to give them some abuse to send them on their way. One anti-fascist told SchNEWS “They recruited no-one, didn't seem to have a point to their demo and basically looked like thuggish idiots. They're not even frightening anymore”.