ITV News Global Security Editor Rohit Kachroo exposes how one of Britain’s leading fascists ended up working for Buckingham Palace
The chief propagandist for a far-right network exposed by ITV News earlier this year is a former Buckingham Palace employee now helping to forge an Anglo-American alliance of white supremacists intent on bringing US Neo-Nazi tactics to Britain.
Known only by the pseudonym “John” within extremist circles, ITV can now identify him as Matthew Gravill, a 26-year-old from Leicestershire, who travelled to Texas in September to meet a “who’s who” of senior figures in the American fascist movement.
The excursion was part of the group’s effort to find ways to exploit social and political divisions in the UK and the US.
Material reviewed by ITV News — including more than 100 hours of undercover recordings, thousands of encrypted messages, and conversations with officials and people who unwittingly encountered Gravill — reveals his double life: a Palace warden guiding visitors through royal state rooms, and a covert organiser within an international extremist movement.
Evidence shows Gravill has played key roles in at least two British fascist groups — Active Club England and Vanguard Britannica, neither of which has been proscribed by the UK government.
His trajectory exposes how extremist views can pervade all strata of society, including inside one of Britain’s most protected institutions, and illustrates how far-right networks are coordinating across borders.
When confronted by ITV News on a suburban street in west London, Gravill froze. “Oh f***,” he muttered, before trying to defend his beliefs and justify his secrecy.
“I am an ethnocentrist,” he said. “I believe in supporting and advocating for the interests of my people, currently being driven to the verge of extinction”.
Polite at times and softly spoken, he appeared startled that his activities had been uncovered.
Gravill told ITV News he is an “ethnocentrist” who believes in “supporting and advocating the interest of my people”
Little more than a year earlier, Gravill held a position of trust behind the gates of Buckingham Palace — a warden working close to the Royal Family’s most prized possessions, welcoming guests and moving through the State Rooms at the heart of Britain’s establishment.
But while serving inside the Royal Household, Gravill was covertly spreading far-right ideas beyond it. Alongside his post at the Palace, he was working in another realm — as an organiser in the upper ranks of an international white supremacist movement.
Gravill confirmed to ITV News that he “worked for the Royal Family,” describing his main duty at the Palace as “talking about the history of the place.”
“I’m sure the Royal Family will be very displeased with my views,” he said. “But that’s because the Royal Family is not that interested in preserving native Europeans.”
His remarks reflect aspects of the so-called Great Replacement theory — the racist premise that elites are engineering immigration to replace white European populations.
Asked about the vetting process that allowed him to work inside the Palace, he replied: “They don’t tend to ask questions about the personal political views of their members. So there you go. I’m sure you can ask them for comment.”
We did. Buckingham Palace told ITV News: “Thank you for raising this with us. The Royal Household takes all such matters extremely seriously.
“However, as a matter of policy, we are not able to comment on individual security issues, not least since to do so might compromise operational procedures. Further, since your enquiries in this instance relate to a former employee of The Royal Collection Trust — the charity which looks after visitors to the Royal Palaces and associated staff — this is a matter for them to assist you with.”
A spokesperson for the Royal Collection Trust, which directly employed Gravill, said: “We would not comment on security matters or individuals.”
In the months that followed his departure from Buckingham Palace, Gravill’s focus shifted from promoting propaganda to building power.
Little more than a year after leaving his role, he led a delegation of British fascists from the far-right group Vanguard Britannica to the United States as they tried to forge alliances with America’s most notorious white supremacists.
The September meeting was organised in secret, only publicly promoted afterwards — Vanguard Britannica’s own post about it on X drew barely 500 views in the week it was uploaded.
But it contained an image that became the final piece of evidence in ITV News’ year-long investigation to unmask one of Britain’s leading fascists.
The photograph, posted first on Telegram on September 26, shows a dozen self-styled “delegates” lined up in front of a flag, some in matching blue shirts, their fists pressed to their chests in a pledge-style gesture used by the far-right.
American extremists are seen standing side-by-side with their British visitors, who, according to the post, were there to attend the first “National Conference” of the American neo-fascist group Patriot Front. Gravill’s contingent delivered speeches on “conditions in Britain” and took part in training “workshops”.
Also visible in the picture is Robert Rundo, a neo-Nazi and founder of the global “Active Club” movement. Rundo fled the United States after being charged with inciting violence following a series of attacks on protesters at rallies in California.
He spent time on the run in Europe before eventually being arrested in Romania and deported to the US. He was sentenced in federal court in December last year to time served and supervised release.
Standing nearby is Thomas Rousseau, the 27-year-old founder of Patriot Front, wearing a blue military-style jacket with epaulettes. Rousseau helped organise the deadly far-right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017.
At the back of the group, wearing a grey suit, is Jared Taylor, the eldest attendee and editor of American Renaissance magazine. His attempts to intellectualise racial segregation have made him one of the best-known racists in the US.
“It was really a who’s who of the white supremacist moment today,” Heidi Beirich of the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism told ITV News.
“This was all the prominent figures from groups that are highly active right now in white supremacy and who believe in the ethnic cleansing of countries. That’s what’s coming back to the UK with this connection. Those ideas, those connections to violence, those threats to non-white communities.”
Heidi Beirich, of the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism, said the meeting in Texas is an “initiation of an era of far-right groups working together to build the white supremacist movement” in the US and abroad
Of the twelve men in the photograph, nine faces are visible, while the three British visitors have been obscured.
However, ITV News has identified one of them — the shortest member, standing at the front of the pack, dressed in a boxy blue suit — as Gravill.
“He’s got to have some certain prominence, some reason they want to be interacting with him,” said Beirich. “He’s on their radar. So that means he’s somebody in the white supremacist scene.”
“He is now connected to groups that have track records of violence, rap sheets, who use their propaganda to terrorise people of colour, immigrants, others – whose beliefs are absolutely heinous and directed at marginalised communities, and who believe in the ethnic cleansing of countries.”
When asked about his meetings with Rousseau and Rundo, Gravill only said he was “having conversations” about “various topics,” adding: “I went to a conference and I saw some nice people.”
So why the need to hide his face in the photograph? “Because people like you [journalists] love to try and ruin people”.
Neil Basu, the former head of UK counter-terrorism policing, on the significance of Matthew Gravill’s visit to the United States
Gravill’s attendance at the white supremacist summit marks a “disturbing” shift in the behaviour of the far-right, according to Neil Basu, the former head of UK counter-terrorism policing, after reviewing sections of the evidence gathered by ITV News.
He said: “I think what’s changing the nature of the far-right threat in this country is that it’s drawing support from abroad.
“So, to see that many British faces blurred — because clearly, they understand the ramifications of being seen with a group like that in America — with a very powerful group in America that has a voice in a big, big movement in America, that’s disturbing. That’s a new elevation of the threat.”
“[In the past], we’d seen some level of European and American cooperation or willingness to speak to each other, but we didn’t see a sort of sense of an organised [event]” he said, referring to his time as Assistant Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police between 2018 and 2021.
“You wouldn’t have seen a person like this in the centre of a major American organisation… What is very disturbing is that this is a pretty articulate young man, so who is clearly organised and clearly capable of bridging barriers between organisations.
ITV News first encountered Gravill in October 2024, when he worked as a promotional strategist for Active Club England, a branch of the American Neo-Nazi network which masquerades as a fitness group.
Propaganda being published by the group at the time sought to exploit public anger over the July 2024 murders of three girls in Southport — using the tragedy to recruit followers and organise so-called “training sessions” for a future race war.
Gravill photographed and filmed high-intensity training sessions in a park in Vauxhall, South London, just steps from the headquarters of MI6 — workouts which were, in fact, preparation for violence.
“I do the technical side of things, you know, and the photography,” he said during one conversation secretly recorded by ITV News. “I do all the photos, the artwork, the designs, the logos, the Active Club symbol.”
He added: “I talk with all our friends abroad” — a hint at the international liaison role he would hold inside Vanguard Britannica.
However, Gravill was acutely aware of the risks of exposure — he only ever used his middle name, John, and always avoided being seen himself, photographing other members.
At one meeting, he tried to reassure them: “Any photos we take, I’ll keep faces out of it and blur them myself. And ultimately, if anyone’s going to get in trouble for it, it’ll be me.”
ITV News spent six months undercover inside Active Club England, infiltrating the fortnightly “fitness sessions”, witnessing coded conversations about self-defence which soon turned into explicit discussions of violence.
In one meeting, a member boasted: “I got about a grand’s worth of throwing knives and axes … and I got a bunch of bows and s*** as well.”
Another declared: “We’re here to defend ourselves when the s*** hits the fan … after the s*** is over … someone needs to step up. We’re here to take power whenever the opportunity arises.”
Members performed Nazi salutes and used explicitly racist and antisemitic language too offensive to republish
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said the footage, broadcast by ITV News in February 2025, showed “why action is needed” against extremists, insisting “there is no place for violence in politics.”
In response, the group stated at the time: “Active Club England is a fraternal organisation for young Englishmen, dedicated to the development of a culture of brotherhood, physical fitness and self-improvement. We are unapologetically for the English people and our continued existence in our ancestral homelands. We stand for total victory through cultural rebirth.”
Weeks after the last of the Active Club meetings in Vauxhall, Gravill was organising extremist events again, this time under the Vanguard Britannica label.
ITV News has established that he was the organiser of a “training summit” in the Thames Valley for the network, which he called Winter Assembly 2025.
The two-day retreat drew at least nine recruits and was staged at a secluded country house better known for hosting women’s wellness weekends, meditation, and spiritual retreats. Gravill chose the venue because it offered privacy.
According to a post on a Vanguard propaganda account, the gathering included “discussions around ideology, tactics and organising.” Published on January 28, 2025, the message promised that the movement would grow in the year ahead — a prediction that was soon borne out. It closed with the rallying cry: “The Lion Wakes!”
When asked about Vanguard Britannica, Gravill described its activities in cautious terms. “The function of the organisation,” he said, “is to advocate peacefully for various policies that mainstream groups can take on.”
Yet the group’s social media channels promote ideas of remigration and racial purity — and on that point, Gravill was explicit: “I believe in having an ethnically homogenous society.”
Despite advocating for what amounts to ethnic cleansing, he insisted his aims were non-violent.
“I have no interest in killing, hurting, violence, terrorism — anything like that,” he said. “I believe in peaceful political activism, and that is the basis of my stances.”
It was a moment of striking double-speak: language of peace used to justify a vision built on violent exclusion.
Basu, the former head of UK counterterrorism policing, said Gravill’s words marked a contradiction — the language of non-violence jarring with his promotion of combat training and weapons skills.
“You’re describing an organisation that’s attempting to train and organise,” he said. “So what do you think they’re preparing for — just self-defence? That sounds a bit like a war, a war on race.”
He added that Gravill’s story is not just about one man, but about a movement — and a moment.
The rise of the groups he helps to lead, he said, reflects not only their growing ability to organise, but the climate that enables them: a politics of polarisation and grievance where the language of extremism no longer sounds out of place.
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