The leader of Raise the Colours in Oxfordshire claims he has been sent a £48,000 bill in court costs after the county council got an injunction against him.
Ryan Bridge, of Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, was one the individuals named in a High Court injunction filed by Oxfordshire Coroner's Court to prevent flags being put up illegally on public highway infrastructure.
It followed a months-long campaign from Raise The Colours and other political actors who encouraged individuals to put up Union Jack and England flags on lampposts and other poles on roadsides and streets in Oxford.
Pre-action and formal legal letters were issued by the county council to Ryan Bridge, Ben Cullen, Trudy Wells and Kevin Good, advising them that if they did not stop putting up flags and harassing workers attempting to remove them, the council would start legal proceedings and "seek both injunctive relief and its costs".
Flag hanging Abingdon Road Oxford March 2026 (Image: Elsie from the block)
None of the four letters received a response from the named individuals, and in June the county council brought legal action against Bridge, Cullen, Wells and Good, as well as 'person's unknown'.
The four named individuals made a formal undertaking to the court promising that they would no longer 'raise' the flags or encourage others to do so at the High Court hearing.
Now, four months after the hearing, Ryan Bridge has claimed in a video on social media that he has been footed with a £48,000 bill to cover the council's legal costs.
In the video, Bridge said: "So the High Court are sending me a bill - have a look at these for a laugh.
"They're just sending me loads of invoices: two hundred, three hundred, this barrister he wants another grand, he wants fourteen hundred quid.
"It just keeps going. Its absolutely mental.
"They've given me this, £48,000 they want off me. They want £48,000 to pay for their legal fees.
"So there you go guys, that's Oxford. That's just another problem I've got."
File photo dated 14/09/25 of St George's and Union flags hanging from lamposts in Birmingham. (Image: Jacob King/PA Wire)
It is understood that all four of the individuals named on the injunction will face a bill to pay the council's legal fees in similar terms.
The council's case for the injunction made to the High Court said the groups hanging the flags caused safety risks to themselves and others, as well as trespass and obstruction to the highway.
Many claimed the flags were not being flown out of 'patriotism' but as an expression of xenophobia or racism, a view encouraged by the regular video posts made by groups like Oxfordshire Raise the Colours and Oxfordshire Patriots on social media.
Bridge is facing another High Court hearing on November 2, brought by Birmingham City Council which is seeking a similar injunction to stop him hanging or encouraging others to hang flags from public infrastructure.
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