In a spacious hall opposite Baker Street station in Central London, a group of students digested their Grand Annual Dinner and waited for the speeches.
There was to be no bawdy comedian or former sportsman; the University of Westminster Islamic Society had booked Dr Khalid Fikry, an Egyptian cleric renowned for his fiery Islamist rhetoric. In the past, he has defended convicted terrorists, demanded the release of Osama bin Laden’s spokesman and lavished praise on jihadi leaders.
At the university event last month, his subject sounded relatively tame: “Sharia, barbaric or merciful?” During a rare speech that cameras were allowed to record, he argued for the introduction of polygamy and the brutal treatment of those who broke Islamic law. “When the thief has his hand