Who is behind the anti-Elon Musk protests targeting Tesla in London?
From Bluesky radicals to slick PR professionals, Alexander Butler reports on the Britons trying to take down Elon Musk
On a sunny morning in west London, a group of around 30 protesters had gathered outside a gleaming Tesla car dealership next to a busy A-road.
They were part of a “Tesla Takedown UK” demonstration, one of three anti-Elon Musk campaign groups that have sprung up across Britain in response to the billionaire’s repeated interventions in European politics.
The group, inspired by American counterpart Tesla Takedown, vowed to “tank Tesla’s stock” and called for a boycott of Musk’s electric vehicle company.
“Elon Musk is a threat to truth, democracy and most of all the climate. He is... supporting authoritarians around the world. We need to stop him and we can,” said Theodora Sutcliffe, 50, while clutching a carrier bag of hand-drawn placards.
The protest was organised by 50-year-old software engineer John Gorenfeld, who became “excited” after seeing what anti-Musk protesters were doing across the US on X (Twitter) competitor Bluesky.
“We originated on Bluesky. For a while, it felt like a lot of us were stunned into not protesting Trump’s administration after he became president,” Mr Gorenfeld told The Independent.
“We were watching and waiting for someone to do something. I saw Tesla Takedown in the US and it was very exciting, so I did the same in London.”
In the US, president Donald Trump has threatened to label Tesla Takedown as “domestic terrorists” following dozens of largely peaceful, but sometimes violent, demonstrations against the company.
Musk, meanwhile, has claimed – without evidence – that the protests were being funded by his political enemies and Democrat donors George Soros and Reid Hoffman.
A 24-year-old former US National Parks employee, who refused to give his name, joined the London protest to show solidarity with US protesters after he was fired alongside 30,000 others earlier this year as part of Musk’s purge of federal employees.
“I was visiting the UK and was looking for a way to protest against Elon Musk. There is a lot of that going on in the US and I felt a little left out,” he told The Independent.
“I feel embarrassed as an American in the UK. With Musk wading into British and European politics, and how Trump is treating Zelensky, I want to show that the American people do not stand for this.”
Alongside weekly protests, Tesla Takedown UK also encourages British Tesla owners to sell their cars, and encourages EV drivers to boycott Tesla charging points.
A few weeks earlier, the “Everybody Hates Elon” group started a guerrilla advertisement campaign throughout London with similar objectives.
“Tesla: The Swasticar”, a poster read at a bus stop opposite Sadler’s Well Theatre in Clerkenwell. “Autopilot for your car. Autocrat for your country.”
.jpeg)
The satirical swipe at multi-billionaire Musk was organised by People vs Profiteers, a professional PR group run by consultant Jack Steadman, who has also run campaigns criticising the UK’s Rwanda scheme.
“We are holding Elon to account,” the group said. “Not happy with fuelling the far-right in the USA, Elon Musk is now doing the same in Europe.”
Musk was accused of giving what appeared to be a Nazi “salute” during a Trump inauguration rally in January.
In response he said on X, formerly Twitter: “Frankly, they need better dirty tricks. The ‘everyone is Hitler’ attack is so tired.”
He also took aim at Germany ahead of federal elections in February, endorsing and promoting the far-right AfD, which came second in the polls.
Campaign group Overthrow Musk has also taken to erecting larger-scale billboard-style posters across other parts of the capital.
The group said it was founded to “fight the oligarchs” and “defend democracy”, with their political stunts cropping up in Tottenham, Walthamstow and St Albans.
In Walthamstow, a billboard showed an image of Musk with the words: “Buying a Tesla? You may be in for a Nazi surprise”.
A mock film advertisement for “The Fast and Führer” showing a “Doge” plated Telsa Model S next to the caption “Heil Tesla” was also put up in Tottenham.
It had a fake PG warning reading: “Parental guidance. Tesla’s CEO is a far-right activist. Don’t give him your money.”
Dan, who designs posters for Overthrow Musk, and only gave his first name, told The Independent: “Musk is an oligarch co-president. He is a very dangerous man and his support for far-right European parties shows this.
“But his weak spot is Tesla. His wealth is tied up in it. Reducing Tesla’s sales reduces his power. We are trying to make the link between Tesla and Musk more obvious.”
The UK only accounts for 4.6 per cent of Tesla’s market share, compared with 42.5 per cent in the US and 10.4 per cent in China. Nearly 4,000 Tesla’s were sold in the UK in February 2025.
Tesla’s market capitalisation dropped 45 per cent since hitting an all-time high of $1.5 trillion in December 2023, erasing most gains the stock made after Musk financed Trump’s election campaign.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
10Comments