British Movement - New Group

New Group

A group calling itself the British Movement continued to operate after September 1983 under the leadership of Stephen Frost, a Yorkshire member of the original BM. At its 1985 yearly meeting the BM established a new group to be known as the British National Socialist Movement (BNSM). Whilst the BM continued to exist alongside the BNSM the latter would give more freedom to activists by operating as a cell-based structure within the BM. The new group attempted to act as a rallying-point for white power skinheads, although this role was later filled more successfully by Blood and Honour. It also continued to have involvement in football hooliganism and BM members were amongst the rioters responsible for the Heysel Stadium disaster at the 1985 European Cup final.

The BNSM was soon attempting to re-activate the old BM membership and followed the old template of encouraging members to undergo military training through the TA or other means. The BNSM also built up links with the Ulster Defence Association and Ulster Volunteer Force and BNSM members also served with the English companies of these Ulster loyalist paramilitaries. The group, which had about 300 members by 1990, also sought links with European groups and was close to Dutch former SS man Et Wolsink who was variously connected to Dutch Peoples-Union and the Dutch sections of the Wiking-Jugend and the Action Front of National Socialists/National Activists. Links were also built with the white power music scene of Blood and Honour and in particular Ian Stuart Donaldson who, despite his previous membership of the NF, was close Cat Mee, a BM orgnaiser in Derbyshire. Donaldson's attempts to leave the skinhead scene and scale back his involvement in music soured the relationship however and in 1990 links were severed after a group of activists turned up at Donaldson's local pub and told him to play for them or face assault.

The progress of the BNSM was halted in the early 1990s by the emergence of Combat 18 with much of the membership switching allegiance to this new group. The new BM re-emerged during the mid 1990s by becoming heavily involved in the distribution of white power music. By this time Micky Lane had taken over as leader of the group, a position that meant his name appear on an alleged Combat 18 hitlist due to the rivalries between the groups. Although a British Movement still exists, it has a tiny, largely inactive, membership. It does however maintain a presence on the internet.