Peter Ettedgui, an Emmy and Bafta-winning filmmaker, has rejected Nigel Farage’s recent statement as inadequate. Farage claimed he was sorry if anyone was genuinely hurt, but this conditional apology failed to satisfy Ettedgui and others who accused him of racist and antisemitic conduct during their time at Dulwich College in south London.
Farage, leader of Reform UK, made his remarks during a BBC interview with presenter Laura Kuenssberg for a documentary about his political party’s rise. The party currently leads opinion polls. His statement marked the first indication of remorse since investigative reporting revealed allegations of past behaviour that had previously been flatly denied.
The accusations stem from detailed accounts provided by 34 school contemporaries who witnessed or experienced racist and antisemitic behaviour. Ettedgui was among those alleging that Farage regularly subjected him to antisemitic taunts, including statements about Hitler. Ettedgui expressed frustration that Farage’s initial response had been to deny outright these claims from numerous witnesses rather than acknowledge them.
Ettedgui questioned the substance of Farage’s latest comments, noting that the conditional nature of the apology represented minimal progress. Previous attempts to characterize the behaviour as schoolboy banter or dismiss accusers as liars were worse, he argued, but the current statement still fell short of genuine accountability. He emphasized that the conduct extended far beyond what was considered acceptable, even in the 1970s when it occurred.
Farage maintained during his interview that teenage boys at all-boys schools in the late 1970s commonly engaged in brutal behaviour, and he received supportive messages from former Jewish classmates. He insisted his intentions were never to wound or hurt anyone. However, Ettedgui raised pressing questions about whether Farage’s current political positions have been shaped by the views he expressed at school, given his ambitions for higher political office.
