Michael van Erp, better known as CyclingMikey, is a London-based

YouTuber A YouTuber is a content creator and social media influencer who uploads or creates videos on the online video-sharing website YouTube, typically posting to their personal YouTube channel. The term was first used in the English language in 2006 ...

who films drivers using their mobile phones as well as committing other

traffic offences A moving violation or traffic violation is any violation of the law committed by the driver of a vehicle while it is in motion. The term "moving" distinguishes it from other motor vehicle violations, such as paperwork violations (which include ...

, footage of which he reports to the

police The police are Law enforcement organization, a constituted body of Law enforcement officer, people empowered by a State (polity), state with the aim of Law enforcement, enforcing the law and protecting the Public order policing, public order ...

, and later uploads to his YouTube channel.

Video content

In November 2019, Van Erp filmed

Guy Ritchie Guy Stuart Ritchie (born 10 September 1968) is an English film director, producer and screenwriter known primarily for British comedy gangster films and large-scale action-adventure films. Ritchie left school at the age of 15, and worked in e ...

using a mobile phone while driving. Ritchie was subsequently prosecuted and banned from driving for six months. In 2021, he filmed

Chris Eubank Christopher Livingstone Eubank (also Christopher Livingstone Eubank Sr. born 8 August 1966) is a British former professional boxer who competed from 1985 to 1998. He held the World Boxing Organization (WBO) middleweight and super-middlewei ...

driving through a red light, an offence for which Eubank was subsequently prosecuted. In April 2021, he filmed

Frank Lampard Frank James Lampard (born 20 June 1978) is an English professional football manager and former player who is the manager of English club Coventry City. Widely regarded as one of the greatest midfielders of all time, one of Chelsea's greates ...

using a mobile phone and holding a hot drink while driving, but the prosecution was later dropped, due to insufficient evidence, after Lampard hired lawyer Nick Freeman to deal with the case. A regular location for Van Erp's videos and reports is a crossroads beside

Regent's Park Regent's Park (officially The Regent's Park) is one of the Royal Parks of London. It occupies in north-west Inner London, administratively split between the City of Westminster and the London Borough of Camden, Borough of Camden (and historical ...

, which he dubbed "Gandalf Corner", where he waits and has stopped many drivers from driving on the wrong side of the road past a pedestrian crossing island to avoid queueing to turn right. In September 2021, while at "Gandalf Corner", Van Erp ended up on the bonnet of celebrity talent agent Paul Lyon-Maris's Range Rover while trying to stop him from making an illegal right turn. Since Lyon-Maris continued to drive with Van Erp on the bonnet, he was charged with assault and dangerous driving, besides the lesser charge of contravening a keep-left sign. Lyon-Maris pleaded guilty to the lesser charge, but he pleaded not guilty to the two greater charges, alleging that Van Erp jumped onto the bonnet while Van Erp claimed Lyon-Maris drove into him and he fell onto the bonnet. A jury cleared Lyon-Maris of both remaining charges. In November 2022, Van Erp appeared on the BBC television programme ''

Panorama A panorama (formed from Greek language, Greek πᾶν "all" + ὅραμα "view") is any Obtuse angle, wide-angle view or representation of a physical space, whether in painting, drawing, photography (panoramic photography), film, seismic image ...

'', in an episode titled "Road Rage: Cars v Bikes". In April 2024, Van Erp released a video of himself running a red light in Belgravia, London. He stated "It's my mistake, I hold my hands up, I'm at fault there. ��I missed that the other two traffic lights were still red". He also stated "If the police prosecute me, so what? I'll pay the fine, you're not going to see me complaining".

Personal life

Van Erp was born in January 1972 in the Netherlands and grew up in

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

. When he was 19, his father, while riding a motorbike, was killed by a

drunk driver Drunk driving (or drink-driving in British English) is the act of driving under the influence of alcohol. A small increase in the blood alcohol content increases the relative risk of a motor vehicle crash. In the United States, alcohol is in ...

. Van Erp moved to the UK in 1998 to pursue a career in IT. He is now a professional carer. He has also worked as a

roller skating Roller skating is the act of travelling on surfaces with roller skates. It is a recreation, recreational activity, a sport, and a form of transportation. Roller rinks and skate parks are built for roller skating, though it also takes place on s ...

instructor. He has two sons and lives in west London.{{Cite web, url=https://metro.co.uk/2022/01/18/frank-lampard-pictured-for-first-time-after-driving-while-using-phone-charge-dropped-15937461/, title=Frank Lampard pictured for first time after driving while using phone charge dropped, first=James, last=Hockaday, date=18 January 2022

References

Dutch YouTubers Living people Dutch emigrants to England 1972 births