When Olly Murs stoked terror fears last year about shots being fired near Oxford Circus station in London, he was criticised for acting irresponsibly.
And you can see why – fears and panic were increased dramatically by the singer’s claims, so when it later emerged the gunfire was a false alarm, attention returned to the man whose comments and platform had played a part in the widespread concerns.
You might have expected Murs to delete the tweets, but to do so would require him to accept he was wrong about shots being fired.
Instead, he has doubled down, suggesting the subsequent reports of no shots being fired might be the real fake news.
In fact, not only does Murs stick to his guns, but he’s suggested something more nefarious might be at play.
He admitted back on Black Friday in November, when the supposed incident took place in the Selfridges store on Oxford Street, that he had eventually been told there were no shots.
However, with the benefit of hindsight, he has begun to question whether there might have been a cover up over what is widely regarded to have been a false alarm.
“Whether they were shooting into the air, or whatever, something happened that day,” Murs told The Sun.
“Whether it was covered up, I don’t know,” he added, admitting his initial tweet was sent in response to what he had heard from staff and other shoppers.
During panicked situations such as the one faced by Murs, it’s normal for conflicting information to do the rounds.
Still, it might be time for us to admit there’s a new brand of conspiracy theorist to contend with: Selfridges Truthers; population one.
(Images: Getty)
