On a Los Angeles stage in 2011 Winston Marshall, then the banjo player for the folk rock band Mumford & Sons, could scarcely believe what was happening. Not only was he playing at the Grammys, he was playing alongside Bob Dylan, legendary composer of social justice anthems and one of his heroes.
About 15 years later, Marshall once again found himself stateside, this time on a very different stage. Appearing on Fox News in his new guise as a conservative YouTuber, Marshall advocated what he admitted was an “outlandish idea” to stop small boat crossings in the Channel.
It would be feasible, he argued, to blockade one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes with a giant floating wall, armed with mines. He also described those making the crossing as “military-aged men” – a regular descriptor deployed by the right.
Both the extreme nature of Marshall’s suggestion, and the fact he delivered it on American right’s premier platform, marked the next stage in his evolution from pop star to the latest conservative “free speech” YouTuber.
The fact that he is the son of Paul Marshall, bankroller of GB News and owner of the Spectator, has served to increase interest in his career change. Many in Westminster wonder if Winston’s treatment drove his father to double down on his funding of “anti-woke” outlets, though Paul Marshall’s media investment vehicle is not involved in funding his son’s channel.
Winston Marshall’s career trajectory may be unusual, but his show is part of a growing trend – conservative content that contributes to an informal, transatlantic network of platforms with similar political hues. Marshall is making an impression, with well over 400,000 YouTube subscribers.
Naturally enough, it was social media that inadvertently fuelled his transformation. Having struggled with the trappings of the rock’n’ roll lifestyle, Marshall embraced sobriety around 2019. It left him with time on his hands for long periods. He filled it by reading. “I gave myself an education,” he said.
That education included reading Unmasked, a book criticising the leftist protest movement antifa. In March 2021, Marshall tweeted the book’s author, conservative journalist Andy Ngo: “Congratulations. Finally had the time to read your important book. You’re a brave man.”
The backlash, both online and from friends and colleagues, led Marshall to apologise and delete the tweet. The row led to Marshall’s first mention on Fox News - Tucker Carlson, then the network’s controversial figurehead, took an interest in his treatment. His case briefly became a “cancel culture” cause célèbre.
Marshall quit the band. However, he harboured a regret – not about the tweet, but about his apology. He later said he felt it was “participating in a lie”. Withdrawing his apology was like “getting my soul back”.
An essay detailing the reasons for his departure was soon followed by a podcast for the Spectator in 2021, before the magazine was acquired by his father. By the beginning of 2024, he had launched The Winston Marshall Show on YouTube.
Marshall, who was privately educated but opted not to attend university, sharpened his debating skills at the Oxford Union in 2024, arguing against the motion “this house believes populism is a threat to democracy”. Former US House speaker Nancy Pelosi spoke in favour.
While Marshall once bridled at being labelled right-wing, his show is now squarely aimed at an online, conservative audience. The content is not as extreme as his proposal for an explosive Channel barrier, but his video thumbnails carry claims such as “Britain will disappear” and “the dark psychology of liberals”.
The channel focuses on many of the talking points of the online right, including interviews about the decline of the British armed forces, the traditional family structure, Islam and the impact and criminality of migrants.
His show aims at both the British and lucrative US conservative audiences. It is a similar approach to that deployed by GB News’s new US show and Liz Truss’s YouTube show, though Marshall’s channel is far more popular than that of the former prime minister.
The launch of such shows has been accompanied by a new level of political access under Trump. Last year, Marshall sat in the White House briefing room and asked Karoline Leavitt, Trump’s press secretary, if the US administration would consider asylum for British citizens “prosecuted for speech”.
While his recent call for a floating Channel wall drew attention, his claim in the same interview that the Royal Navy only had four ships “that are seaworthy”, other than its nuclear submarines, has been disputed as misinformation.
A Royal Navy spokesperson said: “We currently have numerous ships deployed on operations worldwide, including several vessels operating in UK waters right now. We also have a presence in the Mediterranean, Atlantic and Indo Pacific. Additionally, many ships are conducting training in home waters, including our aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales.”
Marshall was contacted about the source of the claim, but did not reply. As is increasingly the case with rightwing commentators, Marshall’s new career has been facilitated by YouTube, as well as Elon Musk’s X.
Ayala Panievsky, presidential fellow at City St George’s, University of London, and the author of “The New Censorship”, said digital platforms had ensured a low bar to entry for anyone with the resources and drive to pitch themselves into conservative commentary.
“It is a new version of the Thatcher/Reagan zeitgeist a few decades earlier,” she said. “The thing is that now it’s much easier to do. Big Tech has done a few things here. It allowed for people to collaborate more easily. It has allowed people like Elon Musk to have enormous influence.
“It has also blurred the boundaries. This former musician, who happens to be the son of Paul Marshall, can just declare themselves a media figure, have a podcast and become a public voice – someone who is listened to in this network.”
She pointed to similar phenomena in other countries, such as Benjamin Netanyahu’s son, Yair, emerging as a podcaster.
Building a US audience appears to be a priority for Marshall, as demonstrated by his visit in the last week. It included a piece to camera in front of the White House, praising Prince Charles’s state visit.
It may not match being on stage with Dylan, but Marshall says he does not regret the career shift. “I’m going to say what I think,” he has previously explained. “Because it’s no way to live, with your mouth shut.”