The ringleader of a pro-Palestine protest mob who surrounded Tobias Ellwood’s family home is a passionate Corbynista who branded Tony Blair ‘inhuman scum’ and stood against the Tory MP at the last general election.
Corrie Drew was Labour’s candidate for Bournemouth East in 2019 and came second with 16,120 votes to his 24,926. She was a committed supporter of Jeremy Corbyn and quit the party in 2021, the year after Sir Keir Starmer took over.
Ms Drew, who works in social media, claimed she had already been suspended for the ‘crimes’ of describing ‘war criminal Tony Blair’ as ‘inhuman scum’ and for calling Sir Keir ‘Keith’.
She said she was ‘ashamed’ to be a member of a party which is ‘to the right of the Tories’ and ‘works against the socialist principles it was founded on’.
Now 41, she first hit the headlines when running for Parliament by setting up online fundraisers to help her spend more time campaigning. She said that she was working part-time as a cleaner but needed money for rent, bills and food.
Corrie Drew was Labour’s candidate for Bournemouth East in 2019 and came second with 16,120 votes to his 24,926
Ms Drew is a passionate supporter of Jeremy Corbyn and has shared many photos of her alongside him
Ms Drew was one of the protagonists of the protest outside Mr Ellwood’s home yesterday
‘I still cannot continue to give so many hours to Labour, though, without your help,’ she wrote on JustGiving.
Her page continued: ‘Corrie is fiercely committed to building a country that works for everyone with not one of us left out.
‘She dedicates much of her time to campaigning and training whilst still trying to hold down a job.
‘Running a campaign which is reliant on local volunteers, whilst being on a low income herself, means that Corrie really struggles to juggle paying for her own rent and bills.’
Ms Drew has a first class degree in horology – the study of time and the art of measuring it – from Birmingham City University.
In an online profile she claims to be working class and said she grew up on a council estate in the West Midlands.
She says she started to campaign ‘on the evils of poverty, climate change and animal cruelty’ from age six, ‘to the bewilderment of school mates and family’.
Ms Drew said Mr Corbyn’s appointment as Labour leader ‘knocked me sideways’ and from that point she began campaigning for him.
She moved to Bournemouth aged 18, and at the height of the BLM protests in 2020, led a campaign to remove a statue of Lord Baden-Powell from Poole Harbour.
‘His starting of the scouting movement can be no excuse for his documented homophobia, racism and enthusiastic support of Hitler,’ she said.
She also tweeted: ‘I’d like to state, in the strongest terms possible: If you’re white, I don’t give a sh** about your issues with the BlackLivesMatter protest or movement.
‘We haven’t endured lifelong abuse & discrimination because of our skin colour. Support or shut up.’
Last year she railed against JK Rowling, accusing the Harry Potter author of sharing ‘vile transphobia’.
The campaigner unsuccessfully stood against Mr Ellwood for the Bournemouth East seat in 2019
She appealed for money to help pay her rent and bills while she campaigned in the election
In recent months she has posted on Facebook photos of herself attending dozens of pro-Palestine marches.
The campaigner is a fierce Corbyn supporter and has posted many pictures of the Labour leader on her social media accounts.
She has even been snapped in a T-shirt emblazoned with his face while other pictures show her sporting Corbyn badges.
She tweeted: ‘I’ve had total, unwavering confidence in Jeremy Corbyn since I joined Labour in 2015. When I first saw him speak and read about his work I felt real hope.’
She said while running for a local seat: ‘I really fell in love with Bournemouth, and by working with some of the town’s most vulnerable I became extremely concerned about the inequalities and struggles faced by people trying to make a living in one of the most expensive parts of the country.
‘Bournemouth elections have traditionally been fought by people with personal money.
‘I don’t want anything, let alone a person’s socio-economic background, to stand in the way of true democracy and Bournemouth being a place where all people have the chance to be happy, healthy and prosperous with no one left out.
Last night she joined dozens of people from the Palestine Solidarity Movement who waved Palestinian flags and bellowed chants of ‘ceasefire’ and ‘free Palestine’ using a megaphone.
On a video posted on social media they could be heard shouting: ‘Tobias Ellwood you can’t hide, you signed up for genocide.’
One sinister looking placard had Mr Ellwood’s face on it, while another said ‘occupation, apartheid, genocide’.
Ms Drew has described her ‘total, unwavering confidence’ in Mr Corbyn
One protester later posted on Twitter that the Bournemouth East MP was a ‘complicit in war crimes’ as they demanded an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.
Mr Ellwood and his family – he is married with two sons – are not believed to have been home at the time.
Ms Drew later posted on social media: ‘Tonight, outside Tobias Ellwood’s house 100 of us gathered for an emergency protest after the Israeli attacks on Rafah.’
She then posted the demands the demonstrators made on the British government over Israel.
Sarah Ward later posted on X: ‘We’re here outside the house of war criminal @Tobias-Ellwood calling for a ceasefire and accusing him of complicity in war crimes! #FreePalestine.’
On its Facebook page the Palestine Solidarity Movement BCP branch stated: ‘EMERGENCY DEMO NOW. Today, Tobias Ellwood (the former under-secretary of State for the Middle East) went on TV to say that Netanyahu was out of control, has no strategic-plan and is causing chaos.
‘While we welcome his sudden change of stance, he ignored us for MONTHS and is complicit in the genocide in Gaza. Protest starts NOW.’
A Dorset Police spokesperson said: ‘Officers attended the scene and liaised with the organisers to ensure people could exercise their right to protest legally and safely without causing significant or ongoing serious public disorder, serious damage or serious disruption to the community.’
The author then added: ‘Bring placards, noise makers and snacks.
‘YOU WILL NEED A CAR or some form of transport, to get to this location. Please speak with the community in our WhatsApp group to arrange lifts & pickups.
‘We need a BIG turnout for this to have the impact we need.
‘We are a community, and we will be heard.
‘Save Rafah, Save Gaza!’
A Dorset Police spokesperson said: ‘Officers attended the scene and liaised with the organisers to ensure people could exercise their right to protest legally and safely without causing significant or ongoing serious public disorder, serious damage or serious disruption to the community.
‘We respect people’s right to lawful protest. However, we have a duty to ensure those involved act within the law and ensure the local community can go about their lawful activities.
‘The group left the area by around 8.50pm and no arrests were made.’