Legendary anti-fascist Bob Doyle died this week at the age of 93. Born into poverty in Dublin, the young Doyle Doyle joined the street battles against Ireland’s Blueshirt fascists. In October 1937 joined the International Brigades and fought in the Spanish Civil War where he ended up as a POW until 1939. Throughout his life he would re-visit Spain to campaign against Franco’s dictatorship. Living in Notting Hill during the race riots of 1958 he helped to organise protests and patrols to protect immigrant West Indians. He also drew regular Sunday crowds of up to 600 at Speakers’ Corner, where he would attract attention by setting fire to newspapers and saying “That’s what I think of the capitalist press”.
At the age of 72 he discovered marijuanaand grew his own “Neasden Dope” in his back garden until he grew tired of local youths breaking in to his greenhouse 
His autobiography, Brigadista: An Irishman’s Fight Against Fascism was published in Dublin in 2006.
RIP Bob.
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