The internationally touring performing arts group Shen Yun has been subjected to a series of bomb and assassination threats during its recent appearances in the United Kingdom, including messages warning of violence against venues and a threat directed at Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.
The US-based dance and music troupe, known for its large-scale advertising across the London Underground and sold-out performances worldwide, recently completed shows in Birmingham, Oxford and London. Founded in 2006, Shen Yun promotes what it describes as traditional Chinese culture predating the rule of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
While in Oxford last week, organisers received an email written in Chinese from an unknown sender warning of a terrorist attack if the performance went ahead. The message stated: “If you insist on having Shen Yun perform, you will experience a surprise terrorist attack. I am not joking with you.”
A separate threat received in Birmingham over the New Year was written in English and warned: “Cancel the Shen Yun performance, or British prime minister Keir Starmer will be shot from a distance!”
The threats are part of a long-running pattern faced by the troupe during its global tours. Over the past 19 years, Shen Yun says it has recorded more than 158 threat incidents worldwide. In February last year, a venue in Northampton received a message claiming explosives had been planted in the theatre, reading: “Many explosives have been placed in the theater. If the Shen Yun show starts, we will detonate these explosives. Blow the theater to rubble! This is no joke!”
A similar warning was sent ahead of a performance in Woking, threatening that audience members would be shot if the show proceeded. Despite the threats, all performances went ahead.
Leeshai Lemish, a master of ceremonies for Shen Yun, said the group reports every threat to the authorities. “All of them get reported to the police, who are thorough in searching the premises. But they have all been hoaxes,” he said.
Shen Yun has long attributed the threats to opposition from the Chinese government, saying its performances conflict with CCP ideology. The troupe is affiliated with Falun Gong, a spiritual movement banned in China, which Beijing accuses of promoting anti-science beliefs. Shen Yun disputes those claims, describing its work as cultural and artistic.
Because of the threats, the company now travels with heightened security. Lemish said: “We had one incident where our tyres got slashed so we couldn’t go anywhere. We have also had r@pe threats against our female performers, which means we need security in our hotels too.”
Suspicion that the threats originate from China intensified after a series of incidents in Taiwan last year. According to Shen Yun, repeated threats to a theatre there prompted involvement from Taiwanese intelligence agencies, as well as authorities in Canada and the United States. Canada’s Foreign Interference Commission later said it believed the campaign was linked to the CCP.
The commission stated: “We suspect the threats were coordinated by the Chinese regime, as the CCP has conducted a global campaign to silence and malign Shen Yun since the company’s founding in 2006.” It added that a US-based human rights organisation had documented 135 incidents of interference with Shen Yun performances in 38 countries, noting that “Chinese diplomats were the primary actors in 81 out of the 135 incidents,” indicating the campaign “originates from the very top of the CCP.”
In the UK, Thames Valley Police confirmed it was notified of a bomb threat against Shen Yun on January 10, 2026. A spokesperson said the information was reviewed by Counter Terrorism Policing, which found no credible threat to the scheduled performance. “Enquiries are still ongoing in this investigation,” the police said.
A Home Office spokesperson said: “The safety and security of individuals in the United Kingdom is of the utmost importance. Any attempts by a foreign state to coerce, intimidate, harass, or harm individuals on UK soil are considered a threat to our national security and sovereignty, and will never be tolerated.”
Despite the threats, Shen Yun has continued to stage its performances, maintaining that it will not be deterred by intimidation.