The Tucker Carlson Show

Episode: George Galloway Speaks Out on Being Forced Into Exile After Criticizing Ukraine War

Date: November 28, 2025
Host: Tucker Carlson
Guest: George Galloway

Episode Overview

Tucker Carlson welcomes George Galloway—former British MP, broadcaster, and political party leader—for an unfiltered and impassioned conversation on his recent forced exile from the UK. Galloway details his detainment by anti-terrorism police, the erosion of free speech in Britain, his opposition to the UK’s policy on the Ukraine war, and broader cultural decline in Western Europe. The episode becomes a meditation on political transformation, personal conviction, and the cost of dissent in a climate of increasing governmental overreach.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Exile and Detainment: The Gatwick Incident

• Incident Recap:
  • Galloway reveals that he and his wife were detained by armed anti-terrorism police at Gatwick Airport.
  • He was not arrested but not free to leave, questioned for 4 hours (wife 5 hours) about his political speech and social media.
  • Personal effects, including phones and laptops with sensitive correspondence, were seized under the Terrorism Act ([00:16]-[04:19]).
• Impact:
  • The experience caused significant trauma, resulting in a new heart arrhythmia diagnosis for Galloway ([02:49]).
  • His wife suffered weeks of insomnia and weight loss ([06:19]).
• Notable Quote:
  • “If you had told me eight weeks ago that such a thing was even remotely possible, I would not have believed you. … there is no more patriotic British citizen than me.” (George Galloway, [01:33])

2. Misuse of Anti-Terror Legislation

• Purpose of Detention:
  • Galloway believes the true reason was to punish him for his outspoken opposition to British foreign policy, specifically on Russia and Ukraine ([07:44]).
• Wider Pattern:
  • He draws a parallel to other peaceful protestors detained under similar laws ([05:10]).
  • “Old ladies, old men, people in wheelchairs, blind people, are being arrested under the Terrorism act for holding up a placard…” ([05:19])
• Risk for Dissent:
  • “If they could even do it to me, then I ask you to ponder just who would be safe in Britain from that.” ([05:54])

3. Silencing of Dissent and Political Reversal

• Opposition to War:
  • Galloway asserts that resistance to the Ukraine war is being deliberately repressed.
  • He links democratic erosion to both left and right in Europe, warning that freedom of speech is being “throttled” ([08:17]).
• Role Reversal:
  • Carlson and Galloway note the irony that former peacemakers on the left are now warmongers, while anti-war sentiment is rising on the right ([13:27]).
• Memorable Quote:
  • “The left are now the warmongers and the peacemakers … are largely to be found on the right, particularly in the United States.” (Galloway, [13:32])

4. Britain's Leadership Crisis and the Future

• Current Political Outlook:
  • Galloway predicts Starmer’s imminent fall as Labour leader due to plummeting approval and electoral disasters ([27:54]-[29:23]).
  • He expresses pessimism, believing no “Churchill” is on the horizon, only more neoliberal clones ([29:44]).
• Fragmentation and Reform:
  • Explains the rise of smaller parties and predicts a “Balkanized parliament” ([32:37]).
  • Sees Nigel Farage as unlikely savior; criticizes Farage’s focus on race and reliance on outdated policies ([33:50]).
• Notable Quote:
  • “We are a country in deep trouble. And there’s only one consolation, that all of our European neighbors are in the same trouble.” (Galloway, [34:41])

5. Cultural and Moral Decline

• Abortion, Assisted Suicide, and Gambling:
  • Galloway decries rising abortion rates, state-assisted suicide initiatives, and widespread gambling as symptoms of a “sick society” ([22:13]).
  • “We in Britain have now a 42% abortion rate. Almost every other baby is aborted and we’re shuffling off granny. We have a demographic nightmare…” ([22:47])
• Suppression of Faith:
  • Public expressions of religious faith, such as praying outside abortion clinics, are criminalized ([24:24]).
  • “People like me who believe in God are regarded as freaks by the liberal establishment…” ([24:27])

6. Who Supports Galloway?

• Cross-Party Defenders:
  • Some Conservatives, like Lord Hannon, defended him on free speech grounds, but few from the left ([11:35]).
  • Galloway notes the left has “drunk the Kool Aid of the Ukraine war” ([12:26]).
• Ethnic and Religious Minorities:
  • Black and ethnic minority communities tend to align with Galloway on moral issues ([36:38]).
  • “The only people you could reliably say who will be pro family, who will be pro marriage, who will be anti abortion, who will be anti state suicide, are that very community.” ([37:54])

7. The Failure of Mainstream Media

• Media Complicity:
  • Galloway laments being banned from mainstream media for over a decade despite remaining a popular and influential figure ([25:36]).
  • Emphasizes the power of social media to circumvent state censorship ([26:38]).
• Memorable Quote:
  • “The two greatest broadcasters in the world today are you and Candace Owens. … the audience believes you to be independent people, honest people … that’s worth its weight in gold, but it’s also a sword pointed at the hearts of the liars.” ([26:49])

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Galloway on police detainment:
  “You are not under arrest, but you are not free to leave.” ([00:28])
• Carlson on Galloway's record:
  “I don’t think there are many people who can say they were right in all three [Iraq, Scottish independence, Brexit].” ([03:58])
• Galloway on his opposition to war:
  “I don’t want to go to war with Russia, not for Russia’s sake, but for Britain’s sake.” ([07:54])
• On the state of the left:
  “They believe that a woman can have a penis, that a man can have a cervix, that I am somehow a phobe or an ist…” ([14:22])
• Carlson on faith and human dignity:
  “As someone who thinks that human beings have souls and human dignity is … how do we improve people’s lives and make them more fully human, not extinguish those lives.” ([23:56])
• Galloway on alternative media:
  “Social media has made me, given me an audience, sometimes of double figures, millions per week … nothing like your numbers, but in British terms, massive numbers.” ([25:47])

Important Timestamps

• [00:16]-[04:19]: Galloway recounts his detainment at Gatwick and personal impact
• [07:44]: Galloway clarifies accusations, opposition to war, and free speech concerns
• [13:27]: Discussion of political “cross-dressing”—left/right reversal on war
• [22:13]: Societal decline: abortion, assisted suicide, gambling
• [24:24]: Suppression of faith and conservative morality
• [27:54]-[34:41]: UK political future and rise of new parties
• [36:38]: The role of minority communities in moral debates

Tone and Style

• Galloway: Passionate, florid, and unapologetically direct, drawing on historical references and poetic flourishes.
• Carlson: Sympathetic, sharply critical of current elites, foregrounding moral and existential questions.

Conclusion

This candid conversation is a rare look into the personal and political costs of dissent in Britain today. Galloway, with decades of experience and provocation, uses his exile to articulate a broader warning about the fragility of free speech, the dangers of authoritarian overreach, and the cultural vacuum at the heart of Western society. Carlson’s platform gives Galloway space for uncomfortable truths—and a kind of moral rallying cry for those who would speak out.

For listeners seeking analysis of the criminalization of dissent, the reversal of traditional political roles, and the spiritual malaise of contemporary Europe, this episode is both sobering and galvanizing.