London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Oct 04, 2026

Woman charged after ‘filming inside hospital claiming pandemic is a lie’

Woman charged after ‘filming inside hospital claiming pandemic is a lie’

A woman who reportedly filmed inside a hospital in a bid to prove the coronavirus crisis is ‘all a lie’ has been charged with a public order offence.

Debbie Hicks, 46, from Stroud, Gloucestershire, was arrested in her dressing gown at home on December 29, a day after allegedly walking around Gloucestershire Royal Hospital saying wards were ‘shut down’ and it was ‘completely dead’.

The hospital issued a response to the clip last month insisting wards were ‘extremely busy’ caring for more than 200 Covid-19 patients.

The eight-minute video was filmed on December 28, shortly after the area was moved into tier three.

It allegedly shows Hicks walking the hospital corridors saying: ‘We’ve been put into tier three for this? It’s a disgrace. I’ve seen less than 20 people.

‘It’s completely dead in an empty hospital with wards shut down and the lights off. Where are all the people dying and where is the mutant virus?

‘I can’t see the evidence and neither can the public watching. We’ve been robbed of Christmas for this.’

Gloucestershire Royal Hospital hit back at the time to say more than 200 patients were being treated on its coronavirus wards.

A statement from Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said: ‘We are currently caring for more than 200 patients with Covid-19.

‘This includes many who require treatment in our critical care departments and a further 500-plus non-Covid patients who need our care and expertise.’

Local MP Siobhan Baillie said it was ‘appalling’ that hospital staff ‘had to spend their precious time during this difficult pandemic defending themselves against films on social media that were wrongly claiming the hospital is empty’.

Hicks has been charged with using threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress, under Section 5 of the Public Order Act and is due to appear at Cheltenham Magistrates’ Court om March 30.

A Gloucestershire Police spokesperson said: ‘The charge relates to an incident at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital on Monday December 28.’

Footage of her arrest was also later posted on social media.

Hicks was also arrested in Parliament Square on January 6 after attending an anti-vaccine protest.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
BT Accused of Pressuring Vulnerable Customers During Digital Landline Shift
British Carmakers Warn of Growing Pressure From EU-China Tariff Dispute
Green Party of England and Wales Adopts Motion Defining Zionism as Racism
Medical Charity Threatens NHS Legal Action Over Two-Year Autism and ADHD Assessment Waits
British Transport Police Report Record Rise in Violence on Railways
Glasgow Council Workers Face Pay Cuts Under Fire-and-Rehire Plan
British Medical Groups Press Prime Minister Andy Burnham to Cancel £330 Million Palantir NHS Contract
UK Faces Record Bluetongue Outbreak Across Livestock Farms
UK Schools Report Thousands of Child-on-Child Sexual Offences
High Court Overturns Ban Blocking Gaza Families From Reuniting With Relatives in UK
G7 Authorizes Emergency Fuel Release as UK Diesel Prices Hit £2 a Litre
France and Italy Draw 1-1 in Nations League Match
Pope Leo XIV and Prince Albert II of Monaco Meet in Metz
SNCF Expands Low-Cost Ouigo High-Speed Service Between Lyon and Bordeaux
Paris Expands Dedicated Cargo Bike Routes for Urban Deliveries
French Film Industry Pushes for Tighter Streaming Investment Rules
Marseille Court Hands Down Prison Terms in Public Procurement Corruption Case
LVMH and Kering Rely on US Demand as Chinese Luxury Spending Slows
Toulouse Aerospace Sector Launches €80 Million Modernization Fund
Javier Milei Courts French Investment in LNG and Lithium
Mistral AI Launches Sovereign Model for European Public Services
French Competition Authority Fines Retailers €40 Million Over Misleading Promotions
France Records Exceptional Electricity Exports as Nuclear Output Recovers
Dassault Aviation Expands Rafale Assembly Capacity at Mérignac
Sanofi Invests €1 Billion in New Biologics Production Hub Near Lyon
France Protests Germany’s Extension of Border Controls Into 2027
French Public-Sector and Transport Unions Threaten National Strike
France Deploys Riot Police After Violence in Lyon Suburbs
French Anti-Terrorism Prosecutors Investigate Radicalized Flydubai Co-Pilot
France’s Defense Budget Surpasses NATO’s 2% of GDP Target
French Government Faces No-Confidence Threat Over Budget
France and G7 Release 100 Million Barrels From Strategic Oil Reserves
France Convenes Emergency Defense Council Over Threats to Commercial Shipping
France and Germany Coordinate Military Response After Russian Strikes on Kyiv Infrastructure
UK Police Release Six Iranian Nationals on Bail After RAF Fairford Security Alert
UK Business Confidence Falls as Energy Costs and Tax Uncertainty Rise
Cornwall Insight Warns UK Energy Bills Could Rise 16% in January
UK Introduces Zero VAT on Household Electricity Bills
UK 30-Year Gilt Yield Hits 6% as Bond Market Pressures Intensify
UK Introduces Stricter Subcontractor Checks and Expanded Trade Union Access
Green Party Proposes Three-Year Emergency Freeze on Private Rent Increases
UK Treasury Committee Seeks Tax Clarification Over Manchester City Investigation
Royal Marines Deploy to Faroe Islands for Northern European Security Exercise
UK Business Confidence Weakens as High Costs Delay Investment
UK GDP Growth Revised Up to 0.5% in Second Quarter
Bank of England Warns of Financial Stability Risks From Autonomous AI
UK Expands Early Prisoner Release Scheme to Ease Overcrowding
UK Records Worst Bluetongue Outbreak on Record Across Livestock Farms
UK Government Faces Shrinking Fiscal Headroom Ahead of October 28 Budget
UK 30-Year Gilt Yield Reaches 6% as Energy Shock Drives Borrowing Costs Higher
×