Outside the Old Bailey in 2018, a reinvented Tommy Robinson flashed his perfect new teeth to 2,000 diehard supporters at a “free Tommy” rally on a stage that blocked the street.

Robinson was suddenly flush with US funds that transformed him from rightwing agitator to self-styled “citizen journalist”, with slick videos and a vast social media following that helped his Unite the Kingdom demonstration draw 110,000 protesters to the streets of London on Saturday.

Money from one man – US tech billionaire Robert Shillman – ties Robinson to a Who’s Who of far-right influencers with millions of followers online. Among them was US conservative activist Charlie Kirk, who was murdered in Utah last week.