Cites emotional toll of hostility he and his family received
Jeremy Vine scolds a van driver during an encounter on his commute. Picture: Jeremy Vine/X
April 29, 2025
Chiswick-based broadcaster Jeremy Vine has announced that he is to stop posting videos from his daily cycling commute on social media.
He posted on X this Sunday, “Small announcement. I’m stopping my cycling videos. The trolling just got too bad. They have had well over 100 million views but in the end the anger they generate has genuinely upset me.”
Often, he would edit videos of encounters with motorists filmed with a camera mounted on his cycling helmet with added graphics and sound effects to illustrate examples of bad driving.
He added, “My aim was only to get all of us who drive to think about the dangers of trying to move around cities on a pushbike. I know I’ve sometimes got a little cross when a driver has, say, pulled out without looking, but I only ever uploaded the film to show the danger.”
The announcement coincided with Mr Vine being forced to drive to work because of the theft of his bike last Tuesday (22 April). It was taken from the front of his Chiswick home at about 5am. He said he was awake at the time and the lights were on in the property which made the theft all the more concerning. He admitted to not securing the bike, which cost him £620 in 2019, properly. The thief cut through a metal bracket attached to the front wall of his property.
He posted a video of the theft on social media and followed up with a comment saying, “Do I want to get a replacement and go back into the trolling-furnace? As I say, it just got too hot. A new cycle video would make my phone physically heat up in my pocket. There are at least two death threats against me currently being investigated by police.
“I enjoy debates but not abuse. It’s strange that getting interested in road safety can actually endanger a person. I see other cyclists facing the same and wonder how they deal with it. So when I get my new bike I’ll stay vigilant but won’t share my adventures.”
The 59-year-olds posts over the last nine years have been credited by many with increasing awareness of cycling safety on London’s roads and encouraging drivers to be more considerate of vulnerable road users. His detractors sometimes accused him of amplifying relatively minor road incidents to increase his reach on social media.
In one notable instance, 22-year-old Shanique Pearson was sent to jail after she threatened Mr Vine when he complained about her driving in 2016.
Thieves taking Jeremy Vine's bike from his home in Chiswick. Picture: Jeremy Vine/X
His activities led to a high level of hostility on social media with many expressing violence towards him and sometimes posting abusive messages about his wife.
Mr Vine says plans to resume commuting by bike when he acquires a replacement for the one that was stolen and will not stop filming his journey. However, any recordings will only be shared with the police when he encounters instances of bad driving.
Like Reading Articles Like This? Help Us Produce More This site remains committed to providing local community news and public interest journalism. Articles such as the one above are integral to what we do. We aim to feature as much as possible on local societies, charities based in the area, fundraising efforts by residents, community-based initiatives and even helping people find missing pets. We've always done that and won't be changing, in fact we'd like to do more. However, the readership that these stories generates is often below that needed to cover the cost of producing them. Our financial resources are limited and the local media environment is intensely competitive so there is a constraint on what we can do. We are therefore asking our readers to consider offering financial support to these efforts. Any money given will help support community and public interest news and the expansion of our coverage in this area. A suggested monthly payment is £8 but we would be grateful for any amount for instance if you think this site offers the equivalent value of a subscription to a daily printed newspaper you may wish to consider £20 per month. If neither of these amounts is suitable for you then contact info@neighbournet.com and we can set up an alternative. All payments are made through a secure web site. One-off donations are also appreciated. Choose The Amount You Wish To Contribute. If you do support us in this way we'd be interested to hear what kind of articles you would like to see more of on the site – send your suggestions to the editor. For businesses we offer the chance to be a corporate sponsor of community content on the site. For £30 plus VAT per month you will be the designated sponsor of at least one article a month with your logo appearing if supplied. If there is a specific community group or initiative you'd like to support we can make sure your sponsorship is featured on related content for a one off payment of £50 plus VAT. All payments are made through a secure web site. |