On February 21, 1989, he was asked by a student at Kingston University whether the fatwa against Rushdie was justifiable.

"Rushdie must be killed. The Qur’an makes it clear. If someone defames the prophet, then he must die," was the response of the writer of Peace Train.

In 2000, Stevens showed another side to his bigotry.

The British government was looking to a repeal a law banning the "promotion of homosexuality".

Stevens/Islam condemned the move as a further deterioration in religious and moral standards.

"This is part of the deterioration of the moral statutes that we are witnessing day by day," Stevens said.