Six climate activists charged over invasion of Silverstone circuit at British Grand Prix

Six people have been charged over the track invasion at the beginning of the Formula 1 British Grand Prix at Silverstone

Northamptonshire Police revelaed the names of the protesters as David Baldwin, 46, of Stonesfield, Witney, Emily Brocklebank, 24, of, Yeadon, Leeds, Alasdair Gibson, 21, of no fixed abode, Louis McKechnie, 21, of London, Bethany Mogie, 40, of St Albans, and Joshua Smith, 28, of Manchester.

They have all been charged with conspiracy to cause public nuisance.

The charges relate to the incident after Sunday's race had been halted following driver Zhou Guanyu's crash, when a group of people made it on to the circuit and sat down on the track.

All six will appear at Northampton Magistrates' Court. The force said a 43-year-old man also arrested in connection with the incident has been released under investigation pending further inquiries.

Former Formula One champion Sir Lewis Hamilton had given the climate protest his backing.

In an instagram post after the race, Hamilton said while he loves people fighting for the planet they should not put themselves in danger.

"As we've seen today, this is a very dangerous sport. I wasn't aware of the protests today, and while I'll always support those standing up for what they believe in, it must be done safely.

"Please don't jump on to our race circuits to protest, we don't want to put you in harms way."