He later apologised, but the backlash forced him to step down as a Southampton FC ambassador. He has also shared posts making allegations around 9/11, told the Times that PCR tests were “entirely responsible for elevating a flu bug into a pandemic,” and quote-tweeted a post invoking Anne Frank in an argument against face masks.
So Le Tissier’s chemtrails row isn’t particularly surprising. But why does this theory keep rearing its head?
What are contrails?
Contrails are condensation trails: thin clouds that form when hot, moist exhaust from jet engines meets the cold upper atmosphere. How long they last depends on conditions. In dry air, they vanish quickly.
In ice-supersaturated air – where the atmosphere is holding a lot of water vapour – the water freezes into ice crystals that linger, spread in the wind, and merge into cirrus-like blanket clouds. “Pure physics,” Grok told Le Tissier. “No chemicals involved.”
To be fair to the footballer, he didn’t actually mention chemicals, a point he raised himself: “I never mentioned secret chemicals so why did you?”
“Fair point – you didn’t mention chemicals,” Grok admitted. “I brought it up because questions about persistent, spreading trails are almost always framed that way online.”
Advertising helps fund Big Issue’s mission to end poverty
An unimpressed Le Tissier fired back: “So rather than just reason you went straight to conspiracy theories – you’ve clearly been programmed to do that.”
The chemtrail theory emerged in the late 1990s. It’s believed that the theory harks back to 1950 when the US Navy spent six days spraying bacteria over San Francisco Bay to test the city’s vulnerability to a bioweapon attack. The bacteria were considered harmless at the time, but it has been suggested that 10 people were hospitalised with rare infections. The US government kept it secret for 25 years.
In Britain, between 1955 and 1963, planes flew from north-east England to the tip of Cornwall dropping zinc cadmium sulphide on the population as part of secret experiments to test the country’s vulnerability to Soviet biological attack.
So governments have, historically, lied about what they were putting in the air. But none of this is evidence of a current mass spraying programme – and the chemtrail theory has never produced any. Full Fact has published nearly 50 fact-checks on contrail-related claims.
Big Issue asked the Met Office about the claim. Spokesman Grahame Madge was unequivocal: chemtrails aren’t a thing.
“Jet aircraft produce water vapour and above 20,000 feet this vapour can condense and freeze,” he told us. “If the air is humid the contrails can persist for some time whereas in drier air the same trails can dissipate rapidly.”
Advertising helps fund Big Issue’s mission to end poverty
“Despite some holding views to the contrary there is no evidence to support the misbelief that chemicals are being added to these trails.”
But after the Covid-19 pandemic, the theory surged again, with variations claiming contrails were being used to spread the virus or distribute vaccines without consent.
In its ‘argument’ with Le Tissier, Grok said that the “chemicals” framing is how “99% of these queries arrive online”. Le Tissier didn’t reply.
Though Grok might have won this particular sparring match with the former footballer, it is not always such a reliable defender of truth. The chatbot has generated misinformation about US elections, and spouted praise of Adolf Hitler. It also caused controversy when it flooded X with sexualised deepfakes.
Do you have a story to tell or opinions to share about this? Get in touch and tell us more.
Change a vendor’s life.
Advertising helps fund Big Issue’s mission to end poverty
Buy from your local Big Issue vendor every week – and always take the magazine. It’s how vendors earn with dignity and move forward.
You can also support online:
Subscribe to the magazine or support our work with a monthly gift. Your support helps vendors earn, learn and thrive while strengthening our frontline services.
Thank you for standing with Big Issue vendors.
