Singer Lee Ryan, known for his role in the boy band Blue, is pursuing a Supreme Court challenge in an effort to overturn his conviction for racially aggravated assault. The conviction stems from an incident aboard a British Airways flight in July 2022.
Ryan was found guilty of several charges, including being drunk on an aircraft, assaulting a police officer, behaving abusively toward a crew member, and a racially aggravated assault of a flight cabin crew member. These convictions followed an incident where Ryan reportedly consumed a bottle of port before the flight from Glasgow to London City Airport. According to reports, he was slurring his words and staggering. Flight staff are believed to have contacted authorities, leading to his arrest by police at London City Airport on suspicion of public order offenses.
He was initially given a 12-month suspended sentence in September 2023 and ordered to pay compensation and court costs. In November 2024, a judge and two magistrates allowed Ryan's appeal against a conviction for threatening a member of aircraft crew, but rejected his appeal against the assault conviction. The court noted an inconsistency in Ryan's evidence regarding the extent of his physical contact with flight attendant Leah Gordon.
Ryan subsequently took his case to the High Court, challenging the crown court's refusal to allow an appeal to High Court judges. This bid to clear his name was rejected in July 2026.
In August 2026, Ryan launched his challenge at the Supreme Court. If this final appeal is unsuccessful, he is expected to be sentenced again at Isleworth Crown Court.
This case adds to a history of legal issues for the singer. Previous incidents include a 2008 conviction for assaulting a taxi driver, a 2014 ban from driving for failing to provide a specimen for a drink-drive test, and multiple other driving-related offenses. In 2021, he denied claims of transphobia after an online dispute with a drag queen. His company, Lee Bee Ltd, was also revealed to have gone into voluntary liquidation with significant debts in April 2022.