British actor Eddie Marsan has come under fire for controversial comments made about the white working-class during a recent appearance on The News Agents podcast with Emily Maitlis and Jon Sopel.
The Ray Donovan star criticised what he described as a cultural emphasis on patriotism and identity among white working-class communities, claiming this mindset makes them more susceptible to figures such as Tommy Robinson and Donald Trump.
“If you come from an immigrant community, and you think long term, you put more investment in education and learning,” Marsan said.
“The problem, from my experience of the white working class, is that we value identity, we value patriotism. We wrap ourselves in a flag, we value tribalism.
“As white working class, we value identity, patriotism, we wrap ourselves in a flag… it lets people like Tommy Robinson manipulate you.
…It never improves your life. You can’t eat a flag!”
Actor Eddie Marsan on the disillusionment of working class men.@maitlis | @jonsopel pic.twitter.com/CSWf0VtfHD
— The News Agents (@TheNewsAgents) June 2, 2025
“I think what that does is it allows you to be manipulated by people like Trump and Tommy Robinson. I mean, these guys used to walk down Bethnal Green Road three times a year waving their flags — but it never improved their lives. You can’t eat a flag.”
Marsan went on to compare educational performance across demographics, claiming immigrant families are more focused on long-term growth and opportunity.
“They are the children of immigrants and the immigrants value education. What they do is… they don’t look at identity, they don’t look at themselves as a fixed thing.
“They look at themselves as potential. And we look at ourselves as, ‘This is what I am and don’t you dare change it.’ That’s the problem.”
The comments sparked swift and widespread backlash online.
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One critic wrote: “Millionaire actor explaining to bricklayers why they shouldn’t love their country. ‘We can’t eat a flag’? Mate, we can’t eat Netflix either but you’ve built a career off it. Eddie, patriotism isn’t a product. It’s a pulse.”
Another added: “And has your mantra of ‘one race, the human race’ improved this country? Maybe our elites should try listening to the working class for a change.”
Others questioned Marsan’s authority to comment on working-class life today.
“Dude you’re a professional actor living in London, you’re not working class by literally any measure,” one post read, while another simply stated: “Condescending and disrespectful.”
“The News Agents push this patronising crap and get cheered on for it,” another user wrote, “No wonder half the country is confused, students and activists lap it up without a clue what real working-class life looks like.”
Marsan, who grew up in east London, also spoke about his childhood experiences with the National Front, recalling how far-right marches were a common sight in his neighbourhood.
“I literally grew up with people like Tommy Robinson walking down Bethnal Green Road three times a week,” he said. “If I’d go and get a beigel on a Sunday morning on Brick Lane, the National Front would be on the corner every week.”
When asked what he once said to Robinson, Marsan responded bluntly: “We’d all tell him to f** off.”
He also remembered how his mother once dressed him in a shirt that read “One race, the human race,” urging him to stand against racism even as a child.
Marsan’s remarks come amid his long-standing criticism of Tommy Robinson, with whom he has clashed on social media since as far back as 2010.
The actor has since left X, citing the platform’s shift in tone following Elon Musk’s takeover.
In an interview with The Independent, Marsan said the site had become “a cesspit of mainly extremist right-wing views.”
“You are never gonna satisfy racists- it’s their hobby, they’re addicted to it,” he added.
