‘New Noel Clarkes will surface’ without change in film and TV, say female witnesses
The culture of the television and film industries needs to change to protect women from the actions of sexual predators, women who gave evidence against Noel Clarke in his failed libel action have said.“Noel’s behaviour was an open secret, everyone knew,” said Penelope, a pseudonym for an actor who filmed a sex scene with Clarke.“He didn’t work alone.Those who enabled and protected him should be accountable.“He found a way to operate as he did because there is a culture across these industries of actors not being protected while at work and having no way of whistleblowing,” she told the Guardian after the court dismissed Clarke’s case on Friday.
Unless creative industries actively safeguarded women against sexual assault, harassment and abuse, “new Noel Clarkes will surface”, she said,“I hope that there will be a cultural shift to prevent further sexual predators finding a place in the UK TV, film and theatre industries,”Another woman, Helen Atherton, who testified about being repeatedly sexually harassed by Clarke at work, said: “Unfortunately I have had many conversations with female industry professionals since being involved in this case where they have shared their own experiences over the years of unwanted sexual attention, unprofessional, inappropriate or bullying behaviour from colleagues,”Male colleagues who witnessed inappropriate behaviour had told her “they felt really conflicted about speaking out, and most didn’t at the time due to the power of the individual involved and their status on the production they were working on”,Atherton said changes were under way in the film and TV industries to make them safer places to work.
She said she hoped the revelations about Clarke would “encourage others who have been affected, or who are currently being affected, by similar experiences to speak out and not allow this behaviour to go unchallenged”.She said: “In my experience, this behaviour has become less common but I think there is still a way to go before this is true across the industry as a whole.The regulation and accountability of powerful individuals needs to improve.”Younger, less experienced workers in the industry should be encouraged to speak out “without the fear of causing trouble or receiving a tarnished reputation because you ‘made a fuss’”.She said there should be zero tolerance of inappropriate and unreasonable behaviour, no matter what the person’s “power status, pay grade, fame, or how integral they are to the project”.
Sign up to Headlines UKGet the day’s headlines and highlights emailed direct to you every morningafter newsletter promotionLisa Graham, who endured inappropriate sexual remarks, touching and suggestions of sex from Clarke when she was a volunteer at a film event, said she was relieved the case was over but angry the actor was able to brand witnesses as liars in court.Under cross-examination by Clarke’s legal representatives, Graham was accused of exaggerating or embellishing her account.“But the reality is that the judge saw through him.”Penelope was told by Clarke that the pair needed to be naked from the waist down while filming a sex scene.He insisted she look at his erect penis, making her feel “panicked and shocked”, she told the court.
After the court’s ruling, she said: “I have no joy in today’s verdict.It can never undo the awful behaviour of Noel Clarke against so many of us.I am simply relieved that at long last we have been heard, and that truth, in every sense, has won.“Facing a sexual predator takes strength that can’t be explained.It’s been a very hard few years accepting and dealing with the trauma of all of this.
I only hope no other women will have to go through it.”Penelope, Atherton and Graham were among 26 witnesses who gave oral evidence regarding Clarke’s behaviour.Three more witnesses submitted statements to the court.Clarke alleged that “almost all of the Guardian’s 29 witnesses to the truth defence are lying, at least in part, in the evidence they have given to the court”.The claim was dismissed by the court.
UK carmakers claimed leaving EV sales rules unchanged would cost jobs and investment
Carmakers claimed that leaving electric car sales rules unchanged would threaten British jobs and cost them hundreds of millions of pounds, according to documents that show the private lobbying for a slower transition away from fossil fuels.BMW, Jaguar Land Rover, Nissan and Toyota claimed that rules forcing them to sell more electric cars each year would harm investment in the UK, according to responses to proposed changes submitted to the government. The responses were obtained by Fast Charge, a newsletter covering electric cars, and shared with the Guardian.JLR, the Land Rover maker, said leaving the rules unchanged would “materially damage UK producers’ ability to invest in vehicle lines”.The last Conservative government said last year that automotive manufacturers must sell an increasing proportion of electric cars each year, or else face steep fines, under rules known as the zero emission vehicle (ZEV) mandate
More than 200,000 UK workers switch to four-day week since 2019
More than 100,000 workers in the UK have switched to a full-time four-day week since the pandemic, in a further sign of the revolution in the world of work inspired by Covid, according to an analysis.Nearly 1.4 million people said they worked full-time on four days of the week between October and December 2024, an increase of more than 100,000 compared with the same period in 2019, when 1.29 million reported this work schedule, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).Campaigners and some economists say a four-day week benefits workers by giving them more time to relax and putting less strain on their mental health, while helping businesses by making their staff more motivated and facilitating recruitment and retention
Trump says Intel has agreed to give US government a 10% stake
The US government has taken an unprecedented 10% stake in Intel under a deal with the struggling chipmaker and is planning more such moves, according to Donald Trump and the commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, the latest extraordinary intervention by the White House in corporate America.Lutnick wrote on X: “BIG NEWS: The United States of America now owns 10% of Intel, one of our great American technology companies. Thanks to Intel CEO @LipBuTan1 for striking a deal that’s fair to Intel and fair to the American People.”Trump met with Lip-Bu Tan on Friday and posed for a photo with Lutnick. The development follows a meeting between Tan and Trump earlier this month that was sparked by the US president’s demand for the Intel chief’s resignation over his ties to Chinese firms
Elon Musk and X reach tentative settlement with laid-off Twitter staff
Elon Musk and his social media platform, X, reached a tentative settlement on Wednesday with former Twitter employees after a years-long legal battle over severance pay. Former staff had sought $500m in a proposed class action suit against the billionaire.A court filing released on Wednesday stated that both parties had reached a settlement agreement in principle and requested that a scheduled 17 September hearing in the case be postponed while they worked to finalize a deal. The filing did not disclose any details of the tentative agreement and it is unclear what level of compensation that former employees may receive.Former Twitter employees, led by Courtney McMillian and Ronald Cooper, alleged that the company failed to appropriately pay thousands of workers severance after conducting mass layoffs
US Open tennis day one: Raducanu and Shelton race through, Sabalenka wins – as it happened
We’ll call it a day on the blog. Of course, there’s still Novak Djokovic to come in the evening, up against Learner Tien, the Serbian targeting his first slam in two years. Cheers all for reading this and I’ll be back tomorrow for more.In case you missed it, here’s Tumaini Carayol’s report from Emma Raducanu’s very comfortable first-round win.This is fun, we’re on a final set tie-break between Alexandra Eala and 14th seed Clara Tauson
Olsen-Baker and Leti-I’iga injuries dampen win as New Zealand fly past Spain
New Zealand are up and running in their Rugby World Cup defence with a big win against Spain, but the victory was marred by injuries to Kaipo Olsen-Baker, who was helped off the pitch with a suspected ankle issue, and the star wing Ayesha Leti-I’iga. The Black Ferns finished with 13 players on the pitch.New Zealand’s director of performance, Allan Bunting, had no update on either player after the game as they are waiting for them to be assessed. The lock Alana Bremner said she was proud of how they adapted.Bremner said: “We were talking after and said ‘we didn’t realise we were 13 for a couple of minutes there’
‘It has cycled back around’: Brick Lane and Bradford fear a repeat of infamous far-right clashes
Silicon Valley is full of wealthy men who think they’re victims, says Nick Clegg
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Checked out: Jenrick’s migrant hotel record haunts his rightwing bid for attention
David Lammy given warning after fishing with JD Vance without licence