An eco-warrior has been blasted by Nick Robinson live on-air this morning for encouraging climate protesters to have fun causing chaos in the streets of London.

Dr Gail Bradbrook got a rise out of the BBC Radio 4 presenter when she said the protests were 'awesome' and asked more people to take the day off work and join them.

The Extinction Rebellion co-founder added: 'People are having a fantastic time on the streets... I think its really important that people have fun while they're rebelling.'

Robinson slammed Dr Bradbrook, saying not everyone had the privilege of choosing when to go to work.

The awkward exchange started when the Today Programme host suggested Dr Bradbrook's protests had been irrelevant.

He said: 'Lord Deben and an independent committee were asked to do a target for zero emissions before you took to the streets. So when it's announced in two weeks time, your protests will have been irrelevant to that, wont they?'

The grinning activist said she found it really important that 'people have fun while they're rebelling'

The Extinction Rebellion co-founder (pictured on Waterloo Bridge on Thursday) said the disruptive protests were 'awesome' and asked more people to take the day off work and join them

Dr Bradbrook replied: 'I think our protests have been awesome. We're making history at the minute, people are having a fantastic time on the streets and we really welcome people to come join us.

The presenter, seemingly agitated, then said: 'They don't frankly have the privilege that you do, in order to choose when you can go to work. And they may not appreciate being told they should have fun doing it.'

The climate protester added: 'I think it's really important that people have fun while they're rebelling actually. What we're asking is for people to come and join us if they can and people are taking time.

Her comments got a rise out of Today host Nick Robinson who said not everyone had the privilege of choosing when to go to work

Gail Bradbrook, 47, is one of the directors of private limited company Compassionate Revolution, which has organised and partly financed Extinction Rebellion (XR).

The Wiltshire mother said on a recent podcast that she decided to become an activist as a direct result of taking huge doses of two powerful psychedelic drugs.

Ms Bradbrook, who has two sons aged ten and 13, flew to Costa Rica a few years ago to take a dose of ibogaine, a hallucinogenic shrub growing in West Africa.

The mother, who has a PhD in molecular biophysics, also tried ayahuasca, a highly toxic, mind-bending potion made by Amazon jungle shamans.

Bradbrook , 47, said on a recent podcast that she decided to become an activist as a direct result of taking huge doses of two powerful psychedelic drugs

She said the drugs 'rewired' her brain and gave her 'the codes of social change'. Here, she's pictured addressing climate protesters last October in Parliament Square

She said the drugs 'rewired' her brain and gave her 'the codes of social change'. Afterwards, she ended her marriage and began her activism in XR.

Within XR, she holds mystic 'moon circles' with female colleagues inside a tepee, at which they ingest another 'natural' drug, mugwort, used by ancient Celts.

Ms Bradbrook, a self-described 'neo-pagan', has warned that warming in the Arctic is likely to cause 'the collapse of the food system' in just three years – a belief no scientist would endorse.

Dr Bradbrook appeared on ITV's Good Morning Britain earlier in the week where she looked close to tears as she told of fears for her children's future

She has also said she 'does not condemn' protesters who 'choose to damage property in order to protect nature', although she personally prefers non-violence.

Speaking on ITV earlier this week, she looked close to tears as she spoke emotionally about the impact of climate change and fears her children would be left with nothing to eat.

She told of Sir David Attenborough's fears over civilisation, but Good Morning Britain host Richard Madeley interrupted her to say he is 'not a saint, just a broadcaster'.