Greg Hadfield
| Greg Hadfield Companies House Website (Journalist, political activist) | |
|---|---|
| File:Greg Hadfield.jpg | |
| Born | Gregory Robert Philip Hadfield June 1951 |
| Exposed | Ivor Chaplin |
Journalist who exposed Labour Party hypocrisy | |
Gregory "Greg" Hadfield is a British political activist and an award-winning journalist who exposed Labour Party hypocrisy about Ivor Caplin - best friend of Peter Kyle, Cabinet Minister and MP for Hove.[1]
Charged under Section 127
In 2025, Greg Hadfield was facing up to six months in prison and an unlimited fine - simply for posting, as part of his campaign as a journalist, a single screenshot of one of Caplin's replies to a one of thousands of pornographic posts by an 'OnlyFans' model.
He was charged under Section 127 of the Communications Act 2003, three days after Caplin was arrested - as a result of his disclosures - on suspicion of engaging in sexual communication with a child. A previous arrest after Caplin allegedly sexually assaulted a young homeless person in a hostel resulted in no further action by Sussex Police.
His trial at Brighton Magistrates' Court on November 17th was in front of the country's Senior District Judge and Chief Magistrate.[2]
Acquitted
On 17 November 2025, Hadfield denied sending an offensive, indecent, obscene or menacing message on a public communication network.
Brighton Magistrates' Court heard that Hadfield's 'X' post showed former Hove MP and minister Ivor Caplin engaging with explicit pornography on the platform.
Judge Sam Goozee dismissed the case, saying:
- "Context is important" and Hadfield was "a journalist expressing frustration".
- "The prosecution have not proved the case so I am sure and I therefore find you not guilty."[3]
Details
The court heard Sussex Police arrested Mr Caplin in January for alleged sexual communication with a child and released him under investigation.
Hadfield told the court he had tried repeatedly to flag Mr Caplin's "likes" for a year before posting a screenshot of the ex-Labour MP's reply to an explicit picture on 25 June 2024.
Judge Goozee said Hadfield's post was "a single image, which had been screenshot from another public like by Mr Caplin".
The picture "could be described as indecent in some contexts", he said, but the prosecution's evidence was not the full post and did not "disclose the full image, or the thread of the message".
The judge said Hadfield, a former Sunday Times, Daily Mail and Brighton and Hove Independent journalist, was "whistleblowing and frustrated by the inaction of other parties and bringing the information to a more public platform".
"Context is all important in cases such as these and context was missing from the prosecution exhibit," he found.
Greg Hadfield was a Labour Party member from 2006 to 2021 and involved in Brighton politics alongside Mr Caplin after he stepped down as an MP in 2005.
The former journalist sobbed as he was cleared of the allegation and was comforted by family and friends supporting him in court.
After the verdict, Mr Hadfield wrote that he was "accused under a deeply flawed piece of legislation that is being used and abused by Sussex Police" and prosecuted for his journalism.[4]