Dragons’ Den star Steven Bartlett says Heathrow border guards pulled him aside for questioning four times, including on flights just days apart.
The businessman, who has a Nigerian mum and British dad, said he was kept in a room for up to two hours each time.
But Botswana-born Steven, who in January became the BBC show’s youngest Dragon at 29, stopped short of saying he was targeted because of his colour.
The host of hit podcast The Diary of a CEO said: “I landed into Heathrow, they pulled me aside and I’m in the room for two hours.
“They know who I am – ‘You’re from Dragons’ Den’. I then fly back in a few days later. They pull me back in for two hours. I then fly back into Heathrow – it happened three times in a row… into the same room for two hours, looking at me… asking questions.”
Speaking on podcast Tony Bellew Is Angry, he told the boxer the fourth time came as he flew back from an Indonesian holiday. He said: “I remember feeling, ‘It’s good I have emotional control now’.”
He said: “I remember feeling, ‘It’s good I have emotional control now’.” Steven, founder of £300million marketing firm The Social Chain, recalled fighting at school in Plymouth over racist abuse. He said: “It looked like anger, but I think I was really scared.”
The Home Office said: “Border Force’s priority is to maintain a secure border. We will not compromise on security.”
