Nigel Farage has been pranked into recording a Cameo video tribute for Ian Watkins, the former Lostprophets singer and convicted child sex offender who died in prison last year. In the 27-second clip, the Reform UK leader describes Watkins as “a good man, a really good guy” who “loved his children”, and falsely claims to have known him personally.
The video was requested by a man named John Smith, who paid £98 for the service. Farage, who charges from £78.45 for personalised messages on Cameo, appears to have been unaware of Watkins’s identity. The prankster said he was “concerned that he could not see through my frankly paper-thin deception”.
Watkins was serving a 29-year sentence for attempted rape of a child, sexual assaults, and possession of extreme child abuse material, including offences against a baby boy. He was stabbed to death at HMP Wakefield in October 2024.
When approached by Metro, Farage dismissed the prank, saying: “Thank him for the money. There are lots of Ian Watkins. Tell him to send more. I did alter his request.” This is not the first time Farage has been duped; in 2021 he unwittingly recorded a message supporting the IRA.
Smith defended the prank, stating he wanted to highlight Farage’s willingness to “say anything for whoever is paying him”. He added: “If he would do this for a small amount of money, what would he do for paymasters with deeper pockets?”
