While Pahlavi spoke inside the Union, people chanted his name and held up pictures of him. Many had Iranian flags painted on their cheeks and held red roses in support. Some stood on chairs or climbed onto the plant boxes outside Society Cafe to get better views of the Union entrance. One supporter, who had travelled from London, told Cherwell that they were happy that Pahlavi was being hosted in the Oxford Union and that they were in Oxford to support him because he will lead a referendum for a free Iran if the dictatorship lifts.