According to the anti-fascist investigators Red Flare, Reform’s Matt Goodwin will be addressing a “fascist ‘black tie dinner’” event. Given Goodwin’s far-right politics and long history of schmoozing the establishment dinner circuit, this seems like the perfect venue for the failed MP:

Matt Goodwin, former academic and leading figure in Reform UK, is set to speak at a fascist ‘black tie dinner’ in June. pic.twitter.com/1fS7t0LCap

— Red Flare (@redflareinfo) May 6, 2026

Black ties for the blackshirts

In their own words, Red Flare are:

a group of anti-fascist investigators, using open source and investigative methods to expose and oppose the far right in Britain. We work with journalists to publish stories about far right groups, their organisers and activists.

We also share information with groups threatened by the far right as well as those engaged in opposing it. We come from a range of professional and activist backgrounds.

Our work in Red Flare is entirely voluntary.

In their latest piece, they’ve exposed that Goodwin will be a guest speaker at a Traditional Britain Group (TBG) event. TBG is a hard-right group that exists somewhere between “the hard right of mainstream Conservatism and explicit fascism”, according to Red Flare. The investigative group notes that past speakers have included:

American alt-right activist Richard Spencer, Austrian identitarians Martin Sellner and Markus Willinger, and co-founder of Britain’s largest neo-Nazi group, Patriotic Alternative, Laura Melia.

It’s unsurprising to see Matt Goodwin joining this list given his own connections to the far right:

Meet the racists and far-right activists campaigning for Matt Goodwin in Gorton and Dentonhttps://t.co/H1LTj4HOlA

— Reform Party UK Exposed (@reformexposed) February 17, 2026

Manchester’s theMill noted that Goodwin surrounded himself with far-right activists in the Gorton & Denton by-election. They arguethat this is at odds with how Nigel Farage has historically operated:

Nigel Farage has always been at pains to distance his party from known far-right groups. He’s been publicly critical of Tommy Robinson on many occasions, and as UKIP leader he banned ex-British National Party members from running for his party.

As we reported, Goodwin’s campaign manager in the Gorton & Denton by-election was one Adam Mitula. Reform UK suspended Mitula for antisemitic comments – including Holocaust denial. Despite his suspension, Mitula is still campaigning for the party:

Mainstream media have spent days calling @ZackPolanski an antisemite; why are they silent on Reform’s failure to suspend an actual antisemite?

By @willem_moore_uk https://t.co/VlrTrc7R3R

— Canary (@TheCanaryUK) May 4, 2026

Goodwin himself has frequently sought to describe the issue of asylum seekers crossing the channel as an “invasion”:

Hi @elonmusk , This our short film on the illegal invasion of Great Britain’s southern border and crucially how we can stop it.https://t.co/SKE8Y9BcjB

— Matt Goodwin (@GoodwinMJ) September 20, 2024

As a reminder, these people only cross the sea because Britain refuses to create safe routes for them to make asylum claims. In other words, our political establishment is using Great Britain’s island geography to shirk our international responsibilities. This is unsurprising, of course, because the country is more often than not led by a bunch of pampered Oxbridge shirkers – i.e. the Tories – many of whom have now joined Reform.

Dinner circuit racism

Jacob-Rees Mogg is another former TBG guest, having appeared in 2013. Mogg would later apologise for having anything to do with the group, stating that remarks from TBG members were:

so deeply disgraceful and shocking that they have no place in decent political debate

It’s unsurprising that Goodwin would join the ranks of TBG speakers. As noted above, he has considerable links to the far right. He’s also an establishment man through and through.

According to Goodwin’s own website:

He is regularly in demand as a keynote speaker including after dinner and client-facing events. He has given evidence to various parliamentary committees including the Home Affairs, Education and Public Bill committees and has privately briefed some of the world’s most well known political leaders including Prime Ministers and Presidents of major advanced Western democracies. He appears regularly in international and national media including BBC News, Financial Times, New York Times and Politico, among many others.

Bedfellow

Goodwin’s upcoming appearance is the latest sign that Reform is increasingly comfortable admitting it’s the official party of the British far right. For more examples of this, see our coverage of the 2026 local elections:

• Reform activist worries growth of Jewish population could ruin UK culture.
• Reform candidate suggests ‘melting Nigerians’ to fill potholes.
• Calls for Reform candidate who praised rape of Sikh women to face suspension.
• Media silent as antisemitic Reform activist spotted campaigning.
• Reform activist said ‘Hitler was right’.

Be sure to get out there and vote if you’re reading this on Thursday 7 May (and remember to take your ID with you!).

Featured image via The Canary

By Willem Moore

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