British Movement - Ray Hill's Return

Ray Hill's Return

In 1980, Ray Hill, who had been a leading member of the BM under Jordan before emigrating to South Africa, rejoined the group and soon became one of its leading figures, a decision prompted by the anti-fascist magazine Searchlight, for whom Hill had become a mole. Hill was appointed Area Leader in the East Midlands where he was given responsibility for enticing disaffected NF members to join the BM. Before long Hill had added about thirty members in Leicester and had also built a close working relationship with the British Democratic Party in the city. Hill also managed to ensure publicity for the BM from the Leicester Mercury after a riot in the city, a fact that won him the admiration of McLaughlin.

Following an incident at a Birmingham hotel in which NF supporters had entered a room booked by the BM and daubed the walls with graffiti Hill suggested to McLaughlin that the breach in security had been the fault of Steve Brady, a leading figure in the League of St. George and the only non-BM member invited to the event. McLaughlin appointed Hill to head up an "anti-subversion unit" as a result, although a lack of funding ensured that the unit never actually convened. Nonetheless Hill continued to criticise Brady to McLaughlin and before long Hill had been promoted to the head of the entire Midlands region following the retirement of Birmingham chief Peter Marriner.

Under Searchlight direction Hill sought to take charge of the BM and he launched his campaign at a demonstration in Welling in October 1980 organised by Crane. Attending in McLaughlin's stead after the BM leader had asked him to Hill made frequent references to other organisers present about allegations that McLaughlin was letting them do the work whilst he stayed behind at BM headquarters in Lampeter collection membership fees. A speech criticising the police at a BM rally in Paddington helped to cement Hill's popularity amongst the rank and file membership, most of whom held police in contempt.

After he opened contact with Jordan Hill was expelled from the BM by McLaughlin in 1981. Hill was backed by his Leicester branch, London organiser Tony Malski and Robert Relf and his lieutenant Mike Cole, all of whom backed Hill to replace McLaughlin as leader. Hill released a statement to BM members rejecting the expulsion and threatening a court injunction to overturn the expulsion. With legal advice provided by British Democratic Party leader Anthony Reed Herbert, Hill soon issued the writ against McLaughlin, who attempted to get around the problems by renaming the BM the British Nationalist and Socialist Movement and claiming that the BM in fact no longer existed.