Nihal Arthanayake has told of an encounter he had with a “racist man” outside a pub in Altrincham over the weekend.
The TV and radio DJ – who is best known for presenting the weekday afternoon show on BBC Radio 5 Live since 2016 – took to Twitter and Instagram on Saturday night to share with his over 115,000 followers what happened when he was out with his wife at an undisclosed pub in the Trafford town over the bank holiday weekend.
The 51-year-old explained that he was outside the establishment waiting for his wife, and asked if he could sit with a drunk man to talk and pass the time.
The presenter said the pair were chatting and exchanging anecdotes, before the man went on to ask him if he was a doctor, which Nihal said is “the kind of question as an Asian you might get asked” – but after initially laughing the question off, he queried the man as to “why would you ask that?”.
In response to the question, the man then used a four-letter slur referring to people of Pakistani origin, before acknowledging that he knows he “can’t say that” and subsequently deciding to follow up with the n-word instead.
ADVERTISEMENT
Nihal admitted that he was “still trying to process the weirdness” of the encounter, and “didn’t really know what had happened”.
Recounting the incident in the video shared to Twitter, Nihal said: “I don’t really know what just happened. I was in a place called Altrincham… and I was outside this pub, which I’d been in with my wife, dancing around, it was fun, there was a covers band and they were very good.
ADVERTISEMENT
“I saw this man sitting outside, and I was waiting for my wife to come out so I said ‘can I come and sit with you, can we talk?’ and he was like ‘yeah, yeah absolutely’.
“He was a little, kind of drunk man [and] we got talking and he said ‘oh are you a doctor?’ So I started laughing because it’s a question as an Asian you might get asked, and I went ‘well why would you ask that?’
“And he said ‘well, because you’re a p***.”
ADVERTISEMENT
Nihal then explained that after the man used the initial slur, he went on to apologise and question if the presenter was offended by the term, before referring to himself as a “massive c-word” for using it.
“It was so weird,” Nihal continued in his video.
“But you know when you come to some of these areas, I think there’s just some people who still feel they can say that word.”
The presenter stated in a later tweet that he won’t be revealing the name of the pub as he “had a great time in there before encountering that racist man”, and explained that his decision not to do so is due to pubs finding it “hard enough as it is” to stay open post pandemic and amid the rising cost of living crisis without “being stained unfairly”.
He also said that he hadn’t initially intended to report the incident to the police, but his “mate said that I should and now I have”.
ADVERTISEMENT
He also then confirmed in another follow-up tweet that, after sharing the video to social media and recounting what had happened, he was “impressed” that Greater Manchester Police (GMP) had already been in touch with him.
Nihal said officers are looking investigate the incident as a Racially Aggravated Public Order Offence.
Several media outlets have reported that GMP has been contacted for a comment on the incident, but is yet to respond.
Manchester poet Lemn Sissay, former The Great British Bake Off winner Nadiya Hussain, singer Beverley Knight, and TV personality and influencer Vicky Pattinson are just some of the famous names to offer messages of support to Nihal on social media.
Police officer who sexually assaulted a child while on duty sacked
Daisy Jackson
A ‘morally reprehensible’ police officer who sexually assaulted a child while on duty has been sacked and barred from service.
GMP held an accelerated misconduct hearing with PC Dean Dempster, 35, and he has been dismissed without notice.
The disgraced officer admitted ‘sexually touching’ the six-year-old child in December 2023 and is set to be sentenced at a later date.
He was a response officer in Oldham at the time that the offence was reported, and was arrested by a supervisor when he returned to work the next day.
A senior officer has now said that Dempster ‘has no right to be in police uniform or in a position to serve the public’.
Another said it was ‘among the most distressing cases ever presented’ and a ‘despicable betrayal’ of police duties.
Dempster was convicted of sexually assaulting a young girl while responding to an incident on 29 December 2023.
He was convicted at Liverpool Crown Court in February and remained suspended since being charged at the end of last year.
Presiding over today’s hearing, CC Watson found PC Dempster’s conduct amounted to gross misconduct, saying: “This sexual assault occurred whilst the officer was on duty and where the victim was totally trusting and reliant on him performing his duties professionally, compassionately and with her welfare uppermost in his thoughts.
“It is this most egregious breach of trust of an innocent young child that is most upsetting aspect of this case and something that clearly amounts to an aggravating factor.
“I consider this case to be among the most distressing ever presented to me such is the despicable betrayal of all that is inherent in being a decent police officer.
“I have no hesitation whatsoever in dismissing PC Dempster from the service with immediate effect.”
Detective Chief Superintendent Mike Allen, head of GMP’s Professional Standards Directorate, said: “Dean Dempster is not a police officer, he’s a child sex offender who has no right to be in police uniform or in a position to serve the public.
“We have no time for people like Dempster who should not be in GMP and does not represent us.
“This is why we’re increasingly using accelerated misconduct hearings to root out and boot out officers who are unfit to serve in our uniform, and this work will continue while ever they remain.”
Dempster has been added to the College of Policing Barred List by Chief Constable Stephen Watson, who described Dempster’s actions as ‘morally reprehensible’.
GMP used accelerated proceedings as part of its pledge to ‘root and boot’ officers unfit to serve the public.
The force is now writing to the Deputy Mayor of GM to appeal for Dempster to lose his right to a police pension.
Manchester City reveals details around the first Andy’s Man Club sessions at the Etihad Stadium
Danny Jones
Manchester City have released the first details surrounding their inaugural Andy’s Man Club sessions at the Etihad Campus.
One of the most important charities in the UK when it comes to male mental health and suicide prevention, Andy’s Man Club and even its logo alone have become a recognisable force for good over the past few years, and the significance of bringing it to such a big scale as City cannot be overstated.
The football club first announced the partnership back in February and has already been working closely with the non-profit organisation to promote better wellbeing amongst men, getting first-team stars such as defender John Stones to open up about his own experiences with mental health just last month.
With that in mind, the word is now out that Man City will be providing yet another location for groups to meet and crucially talk through Andy’s Man Club sessions, confirming details around their first meeting from next week onwards.
Set to kick off in the East Stand of the Etihad Stadium from 7-9pm on Monday, 13 May, Man City will not only help deliver a vital outlet for men in the East Manchester area but become just the latest in a long line of teams to back the regular support group.
Joining over 180 clubs nationwide – including the likes of Altrincham FC, Ashton United and Bolton Wanderers, just to name a few in the Greater Manchester area – Andy’s Mans Club is currently helping well over 4,000 men open up and combat their struggles through peer-to-peer sessions.
Founded by a group of nine blokes from Halifax back in 2016 to create positive change in men’s mental health, Andy’s Man Club now helps gather men aged 18 and over across the country every week throughout the year.
In alignment with other partnered clubs Andy’s Man Clubs across the country, attendees will be asked to arrive from 18:30 (UK) ahead of the 19:00 start time.
The sessions are free with registration or ID required and, more importantly, there’s no pressure to talk if you don’t want to. The first step is easy: just listen.
Just because it’s being held at City’s ground doesn’t mean you have to be a season ticket holder, have an official Cityzens membership to attend or anything like that, you can simply arrive via the East Stand reception (Door F) and join the session.
Attendees will be greeted on arrival by trained volunteers from Andy’s Man Club who will guide them through the stadium. With the club now on board, group sessions will be running at the same time every week (except bank holiday Mondays) with the first dates scheduled for the following nights this month:
Monday 13 May
Monday 20 May
Monday 3 June
Monday 10 June
Well done to all those involved in bringing Andy’s Man Club to Manchester City and the East Manchester community. We hope the sessions will help those going along as they have done for thousands of others.