Videographer Fined for Nearly Hitting Fatboy Slim With Drone

Amateur drone pilot Giles Dalby admitted to endangering Fatboy Slim in front of a Brighton court.

Nearly a year and a half since a drone narrowly missed Fatboy Slim during a July 22, 2022 performance on Brighton Beach in the UK, the case has been heard in court. Amateur drone pilot Giles Dalby has been ordered to pay over $1,100 for reckless endangerment of the performer and crowd.

According to The Sun, Dalby’s DJI Mavic Mini crashed into the stage near Fatboy Slim (real name Norman Cook) 15 minutes before the end of his set. On Thursday, Dalby told the Brighton Magistrates Court that he put the drone into sport mode for dramatic effect, making it harder to avoid obstacles.

“I did not intend to put anyone in danger,” Dalby said. “I wanted to create a slow, cinematic appearance. And I crashed trying to get an overview of the scene. It was an honest mistake that I will never repeat. There was no malicious intent.”

Cook, who performed in bands like The Housemartins and The Mighty Dub Katz before kicking off his Fatboy Slim project in 1996, was performing to a crowd of 8,500 at the time of the incident. The event marked the 20th anniversary of Big Beach Boutique II, a free party organized by Cook on the same beach whose attendance of roughly 250,000 dwarfed the 60,000 expected to arrive.

Dalby was fined £576 plus a £230 victim surcharge and court costs of £85, totaling £891 (approximately $1,136 USD). Since the mishap, he has obtained a drone pilot license and has said that he now knows he should not have flown it over the crowd in the first place.

Later this year, Cook will embark on the Fatboy Slim Loves Summer Tour, which will see him perform in eight cities across the UK from June 14 – August 24.