British radical preacher Anjem Choudary was on Wednesday charged under anti-terror laws with inviting support for the Islamic State jihadist group, prosecutors said.
The 48-year-old is regularly interviewed by British media for his views on Islam and the Middle East.
He and a second man, Mohammed Mizanur Rahman, 32, were charged with inviting support for the IS group, a proscribed organisation, between June 29, 2014 and March 6, 2015.
"Each man is charged with one offence contrary to section 12 of the Terrorism Act 2000," said Sue Hemming, head of special crime and counter-terrorism at the Crown Prosecution Service.
"It is alleged that Anjem Choudary and Mohammed Rahman invited support for IS in individual lectures which were subsequently published online."
Both men were arrested on September 25 last year on suspicion of being members of a proscribed organisation and released on police bail.
They were detained again pending a formal charging hearing at a London court later Wednesday.