Cycling Mikey Involved in Confrontation on Gunnersbury Avenue
Alleged mobile phone thieves accuse him of pulling a knife on them
An e-bike rider and Michael van Erp exchange words. Picture: t.32smokey/Facebook
August 21, 2025
Activist cyclist Michael van Erp has been involved in another confrontation in the area, this time with two young males on e-bikes who he believed were mobile phone thieves.
On Sunday 17 August, he was using the crossing on his bike under the flyover at Chiswick Roundabout when the pair, who were wearing balaclavas under helmets on what was a warm day, overtook him and made their way up the cycle path by Gunnersbury Avenue (A406).
Van Erp, who is best known as Cycling Mikey, as usual was filming his journey with his GoPro. He carried on in the same direction as the pair passed the entrance to the B&Q store until he reached the bridge over the railway line just south of Gunnersbury Cemetery.
He noticed that the two youths were waiting on the other side of the bridge and said on the video he later posted on Instagram, ‘don’t let them choose the territory’. He claims that he saw one of the riders throw something over the bridge which he suggested might be drugs or stolen property.
He stopped to get out his phone and call 999 but then decided that the pair he believed were thieves would come and take it off him so he put it away.
At this point, the two e-bike riders circled back and it became apparent that they were also filming the encounter. They then recognised him saying, “Oi, boi, no way? Oi, it's Cycling Mikey!' Wagwan Mikey”
Van Erp then pulls out an item from his pocket. On a video posted on social media by t.32smokey the caption says 'Cycling Mikey pulls out a flicky' an apparent reference to a flick knife.
Van Erp denied that the item in his hand was a flick knife. Picture: t.32smokey/Facebook
Van Erp says ‘I’m going to call the police now. Why are you hiding? Horrible little thieves.’ Then, as they ride away he adds, 'I will finish you.'
However, Van Erp in an interview on LBC radio said that the item he was brandishing was not a knife but a sharpie marker pen adding , “They do say the pen is mightier than the sword!”.
He posted on social media, “I detest these (suspected) mobile phone thieves. Apparently, the police were chasing them over Chiswick all afternoon”.
A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police said, “We are aware of footage circulating on social media which appears to show an incident in Gunnersbury Avenue, Chiswick, on an unspecified date.
“No arrests have been made at this stage.
“Anybody who witnessed the incident is urged to contact the police by calling 101, or 999 in an emergency.”
The previous Sunday, van Erp had pushed his bike into the path of a motorist who was making an illegal turn at the junction of Goldhawk Road and Paddenswick Road.
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