Joey Barton calling Jeremy Vine 'bike nonce' in online feud ruled defamatory by High Court

Social media posts by Joey Barton labelling Jeremy Vine a ‘nonce’ have been ruled defamatory by a High Court judge. Jeremy Vine, the TV and radio presenter, took legal action against Barton over 14 online posts. In these posts, Barton referred to Vine as a "big bike nonce" and a "pedo defender" on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Vine pursued libel and harassment charges against the former footballer following an online exchange about Barton's critical comments on women's involvement in men's football. Earlier this month, Mrs Justice Steyn addressed several preliminary issues, including the "natural and ordinary" meanings of the posts and whether they constituted statements of fact or opinion.

On Friday, the judge determined that 11 of Barton's posts could be defamatory. She said: “The strong impression gained by the assertion the claimant is known as ‘aka’ ‘bike nonce’, followed immediately by the further assertion that he is known as, again, ‘aka’ ‘pedo defender’, is that the term ‘nonce’ was being used in its primary meaning to allege the claimant has a sexual interest in children."

She added: “While I do not consider that the hypothetical reader... would infer a causative link... the juxtaposition of the words ‘nonce’ and ‘pedo’ is striking and would reinforce the impression that the former was used in the sense of ‘paedophile’." Additionally, she clarified that the term "bike" was a meaningless aspect of the accusation, merely indicating that Vine was known as a cyclist.

During a hearing earlier this month, Vine's lawyers argued that the abuse started after Barton's comments on women in football, especially in the media, in late 2023. The conflict escalated when Barton compared female pundits Eni Aluko and Lucy Ward to serial killers Fred and Rose West.

Vine questioned Barton's remarks and speculated about a possible brain injury, prompting Barton to launch a "calculated and sustained attack" on Vine on January 6. This included allegations that Vine supported forced Covid-19 vaccinations.

Barton continued to post defamatory content to his 2.8 million followers, calling Vine a "bike nonce," a "pedo defender," and associating him with known paedophiles such as Jimmy Savile, Rolf Harris, and Jeffrey Epstein. Barton also used the hashtag "#bikenonce" on X, causing it to trend on the platform.

In written submissions, Vine's lawyer highlighted the "ongoing attacks" by Barton as being "on a very significant scale," with some posts reaching over 2.5 million viewers. They claimed the posts contained "clear references to (Vine) having a sexual interest in children," which led to Vine being subjected to "paedophilic slurs." Barton's lawyers, however, argued that the publications “would obviously not” lead people to believe Vine was “a paedophile.”