Just Stop Oil activists held after paint protest at Natural History Museum

Two medics were held on suspicion of criminal damage after orange paint was poured over a dinosaur skeleton.

Two medics belonging to the Just Stop Oil protest group have poured orange paint over a dinosaur skeleton at London’s Natural History Museum.

Consultant gastroenterologist Will Stableforth and physiotherapist Steve Fay used a children’s powder paint fountain to cover a reproduction Titanosaur skeleton in orange cornstarch just before 2pm on Thursday, the environmentalist group said.

The pair then displayed a banner which read “For health’s sake- Just Stop Oil” before sitting down and waiting for police to arrive.

The Metropolitan Police said the protesters were arrested on suspicion of criminal damage before being taken into custody.

A force statement on X, formerly known as Twitter, said: “Two people have been arrested on suspicion of criminal damage at the Natural History Museum.

“Two activists from Just Stop Oil vandalised one of the exhibits with orange paint. They are in police custody.”

Stableforth, from Truro in Cornwall, said beforehand: “As an NHS medical consultant I’ve spent many years looking after patients with diseases which, at their root, are caused by fossil fuels.

“I have done everything legal I can to get our message across. Most of that has been ineffective, so it’s time to break the law. I cannot see another way at this time.

“The climate crisis is a healthcare emergency for every single one of us. We demand an end to any new fossil fuels and immediate climate action prioritising public health rather than big business.”