Noel Clarke repeatedly asked a fan to meet for sex and groped her under a table at a public lunch, the High Court has heard.
The 49-year-old exchanged messages with the then 18-year-old, during which she sent him explicit pictures after responding to a Twitter post from him asking for “naughty or cheeky” images, Naome Morris told the court.
Giving evidence on Monday, Ms Morris said she had been a Doctor Who fan and it was “incredible” to be contacted by someone from the show.
She told the court that in their exchanges in 2010, Clarke would ask for nude pictures, including requests for specific poses, and also asked the woman – who was a virgin – if she would be willing to have sex with him.
Ms Morris is one of several women giving evidence in the actor’s legal claim against Guardian News and Media (GNM).
He is suing the publisher of the Guardian over seven articles and a podcast, including an article in April 2021 that said 20 women who knew him professionally had come forward with allegations of misconduct.
Clarke denies the allegations, while GNM is defending its reporting as being both true and in the public interest.
In her witness statement, Ms Morris said: “On February 13, Noel suggested I could come to London for his film screening and he hinted he might want to have sex with me on that occasion.”
She added that the “prospect of travelling and losing my virginity was almost beyond contemplation to me, even if it was flattering that he had suggested it”.
Ms Morris continued in her statement: “I told him I had not even kissed anyone and had no experience at all. He responded by saying that it made him feel like a dirty old man.”
Clarke also allegedly told the woman he would be honoured to have sex with her as “being a first is a big deal for a girl”.
The court heard that Ms Morris, who suffered from agoraphobia and anxiety, did not attend the screening, and did not have sex with Clarke.
However, the court heard she met him in May 2010 when he was in Birmingham for promotional events, during which time he invited a number of people for lunch at Nando’s.
In her statement, Ms Morris said: “He grabbed my leg under the table and squeezed my thigh – he put his hands in-between my legs in a sexual way.
“It was very quick but he did this several times. I didn’t know how to react as I was totally inexperienced. I did nothing. I froze up as I wasn’t expecting this.”
The hearing was also told that while posing for photographs, Clarke showed Ms Morris a picture of his penis on his phone, and shortly afterwards “squeezed” her bum.
By autumn 2010, Clarke stopped messaging Ms Morris with no explanation, and Ms Morris became depressed and very anxious about the situation, posting messages on Twitter which included hints about who was behind her stress, the court heard.
In November 2010, Clarke blocked Ms Morris from emailing him, and shortly afterwards the police visited her home making inquiries in relation to allegations of harassment from Clarke, the High Court in London was told.
Clarke eventually took legal action against the woman, asking her to sign an agreement promising not to blog, or tell anyone, or even post indirect tweets about him.
Philip Williams, for Clarke, suggested to Ms Morris that she had been stalking the actor.
She replied: “I was desperate to not feel the way that I felt, so I was reaching out to him, at least for an explanation.”
In his witness statement, Clarke said that in February 2010 it was considered “normal or acceptable” for requests for “naughty” pictures to be made on Twitter.
He added: “I did not take advantage of her in any way, and did not pressure her into meeting or agreeing to a sexual relationship in any way.”
In relation to the allegations that he groped Ms Morris in Nando’s, he said he would not have touched her leg “sexually at all”, “nor would I touch anyone sexually without their consent”, adding that he and the woman “never so much as kissed, let alone groped or touched in a sexual manner”.
The hearing before Mrs Justice Steyn is due to conclude in April, with a decision expected in writing at a later date.
