Shortly before 8am on 13 September 2021, 92 people gathered in small groups at five junctions along the M25, the busy motorway that encircles most of Greater London. It was a warm day and adrenaline ran high.
Cameron Ford, a 31-year-old carpenter, was at junction 3, in Kent. The protesters gathered at the side of the road and prepared for the crucial moment. They did a group meditation on a grassy layby, rush-hour traffic roaring in the background. Louise Lancaster, a 56-year-old teacher with sharp blue eyes, was at junction 31, in Essex. They had amassed in a car park, and everyone took turns running into a nearby shopping centre to use the toilet. David Nixon, a 36-year-old care worker from Yorkshire, had woken early that morning feeling sick. As the group huddled together at junction 14, in Surrey, he found himself completely overwhelmed.
