Over recent years, Andrew Tate has become a global megastar. He started as a professional kickboxer in the United Kingdom, becoming the second-best light-heavyweight kickboxer in the world in 2012. He didn’t start to attract widespread notice until 2016, when he participated in the British Big Brother. Tate’s appearance on the show was short, being removed after six days after he appeared to strike a woman with a belt. Following this, he began to cultivate a reputation for himself as an online celebrity by repeatedly making controversial, often highly misogynistic, statements.

Becoming a global figurehead for the Manosphere, Tate was by 2022 the most Googled figure in the world, promoting misogynist, pro- traditional masculinity ideas to millions of young men. In addition to his social media income, Tate accrued much of his money and fame through an online webcam business, one which in 2023 resulted in he and his younger brother, Tristan, being charged in Romania with rape and human trafficking. In August 2024, Romanian prosecutors widened this investigation against both brothers to include allegations of sex with a minor and trafficking under-age persons, with Andrew being placed under house arrest and Tristan under judiciary control.

Through journalism that is relentless and unwilling to compromise, Tahsin and Shea provide a thoughtful and well-researched investigation that not only explains Tate and the Manosphere’s appeal but also how Tate and his brother developed what the authors describe as ‘one of the largest grooming networks in the world’.

The pair’s interest in Tate began well before his rise to fame, when in 2019 Tahsin received an email about ‘two webcam millionaires’ who had just launched the ‘War Room’, a private network of men who would be trained to achieve the pinnacle of masculinity and wealth. Tahsin recruited Shea into his investigation, and after negotiations with Tate, coinciding with delays due to Covid-19, they both went to Romania to participate in War Room activities. As the official War Room participant, Shea found himself challenged to a televised fight with a trained professional, one he undertook at much risk to his own reputation and physical health.

This participation in the War Room could have resulted in a journalistic freak show. Instead, the two journalists used the opportunity to challenge Tate on his misogyny (risking their own safety and access to him in the process), investigate the machine that has made him famous, and develop theories as to why he appeals to so many men. Through observations and discussions with participants, Tahsin and Shea delved into the causes of Tate’s popularity, including his ability to tap into men’s real-life problems, his creation of a ‘punk-like subculture’ that makes men feel like they are participating in something transgressive, and the way in which he offers an out for men in a challenging world.

The authors examine this in a way that doesn’t treat these men, particularly the participants, like monsters. They achieve this through inserting themselves into the story in a way that fosters understanding and empathy with these men. Throughout this section, there is some tension between the authors, with Tahsin desperate for Shea not to participate in the fight, while Shea wants to continue, in large part to prove his own masculinity in front of the other participants. At times, Shea’s own insecurity about his masculinity is evident, making him contradictorily both a reluctant and eager participant of Tate’s programs and mantras.

While these moments are telling, the real investigation begins in the second half of the book. Tahsin and Shea leave Romania and the War Room and spend years examining how Tate built an empire of grooming. They follow the trails of Tate’s PhD (Pimpin’ Hoes Degree) program, which teaches men how to recruit women to be part of sex webcam businesses. Talking to victims, they uncover how Tate’s teachings encourage men to engage in manipulative and abusive behaviour. They discover how these techniques have been developed, linking them to neurolinguistic programming, the idea that you can manipulate and change people’s neurological processes through language, delivery, and tone of speech.

Tahsin and Shea also speak to and assist three women who have accused Tate of rape, once again related to his webcam businesses. The journalists reveal how British police failed to prosecute these accusations, leaving the women stranded and horrified as they watched Tate become a megastar.

Over their four years of reporting, Tahsin and Shea played an extremely important role in uncovering Tate’s alleged crimes, particularly in the United Kingdom. This will, it is to be hoped, eventually lead to him to facing the British justice system, with Romania agreeing to extradite Tate to the United Kingdom after its own prosecution has finished.

Tahsin and Shea revealed these allegations against Tate prior to the release of the book through two documentaries and a series of articles. In doing so, they experienced real-time backlash. Shea was a particular victim. As the original participant in the War Room, Shea was framed as ‘turning’ on Tate instead of praising him, and in turn became the target of online and face-to-face abuse. He received multiple death threats and was given the moniker DNG (DorkNerdGeek) by Tate’s fans. Shea describes being approached by Tate’s fans in the most random places, fans that included an Uber driver and security guards at Glastonbury. The two journalists again put themselves on the line, doing so with an unnerving determination and grit.

While this could have scared off Tahsin and Shea, instead they use these experiences to explain how Tate has avoided criticisms for such crimes, and in fact have created a stronger following after such accusations have been levelled. Within the cult-like culture that he has created, Tate has positioned himself as a resistance fighter for men, with his followers developing an unhealthy relationship with him that makes them believe everything he says and does. This meant that instead of turning against him following his arrest, Tate’s fans defended him, claiming his arrest was part of a global plot to bring him down. The culture Tate created around himself shielded him against even the most serious accusations of wrongdoing, with the police, journalists, researchers, and feminists labelled as traitors to Tate’s cause and to men more broadly.

Here is where the book is most valuable. The Clown World is a term used to describe the supposedly absurd and irrational state of global society from the perspective of the alt-right and the Manosphere. It is how racist and misogynist leaders, as well as cults like QAnon (or Tate’s War Room), describe everything they oppose, and a clever way to deflect against accusations. Tate isn’t a rapist, the story goes: he is being unfairly attacked by members of the Clown World who want to bring down a great man to maintain the evil status quo.

By titling the book Clown World, Tahsin and Shea deftly highlight the challenge we face in dealing with Andrew Tate and his ilk. As their own experience shows, despite the mass evidence they accumulated, breaking the barriers of Tate’s world is very difficult. Tate has effectively conned millions of people into following his ideas and spending thousands of dollars on his courses. He has done so in a way that shields him against the most grave accusations. Tahsin and Shea offer us real insights into this baleful world. Breaking it down will be the next challenge