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An actress who worked in a film directed by Noel Clarke said she felt “shell-shocked” when he asked her to “bend over further” during a scene where she was naked from the waist down, the High Court has heard.

The woman, known only as Mila, gave evidence on Thursday in Clarke’s legal case against Guardian News and Media (GNM).

Mila told the court that although she felt uncomfortable about filming the nude scene, she needed the work.

In her witness statement, she said: “Noel was telling me to bend over, repeating things like ‘bend over further, come on’, and ‘do it properly’.

“I was clearly very uncomfortable and resisting doing this, I was doing the strip tease as requested and this extra request did not feel necessary.

“He repeated these comments until I bent over further and further until I was bent completely over with my bum in the air.”

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Mila added that she felt “hugely embarrassed, blindsided and shell shocked” by the filming.

Mila also said that while Clarke’s tone “might have sounded jovial to some, it was very persistent”.

Philip Williams, for Clarke, asked her: “Noel’s tone was encouraging and jovial, that is why you put it in, because others knew it was jovial.”

Mila replied: “He was masking his persistent direction.

“If he had been aggressive, or really, really shouting at me, that would have been hard to get away with.”

Clarke, 49, is suing the publisher of the Guardian newspaper 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.

He denies the allegations, while GNM is defending its reporting as being both true and in the public interest.

In Mila’s witness statement, she said she later worked on another project with Clarke, but this had no sex scenes.

Some time after this she received a message from Clarke “out of the blue”, asking if they could speak, she said.

Mila said that during the call he asked her if they “were cool” in relation to the first film they worked on.

The actress said in her statement: “I told him that I was not ok with it and that I had felt very uncomfortable at various points and that I would not let something like that happen to me again.

“Noel said he was sorry if he had made me feel uncomfortable.

“He was talking about how becoming a father had made him reflect and that he wanted to raise his sons to be upstanding young men. He said he was ringing round people to apologise.”

She added that he seemed “panicked” on the call, and it seemed to her that “his purpose was either fishing to see whether I was unhappy about his treatment of me on the film, or he was trying to cover his tracks in some way”.

Clarke’s denial

Clarke denies the allegations Mila has made, and in his witness statement, said: “The reiteration of the scene is highly distorted and exaggerated.

“This scene was not filmed to procure any kind of personal or sexual gratification, nor was that ever the intention.”

He added: “I did not comment in the way pleaded, and did not ask Mila to bend over in any way which made her uncomfortable, or in a way which was not true to the script.”

In relation to the phone call, Clarke said he got in contact with Mila after being made aware of comments she had made about her experience filming the nude scene.

He added: “I apologised for any hardship she may have felt or if, in retrospect, Mila felt uncomfortable.

“I confirmed that no untoward behaviour had been engaged in, and reassured her that protocol had been followed by the crew at all times.

“Mila accepted my apology, admitting that in retrospect, she had changed her mind about her involvement in the scene, and felt uncomfortable taking part in an explicit scene.”

The hearing before Mrs Justice Steyn is due to conclude in April, with a decision expected in writing at a later date.

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Holly Willoughby fined after colliding with moped and injuring rider

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December 2, 2025

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Holly Willoughby fined after colliding with moped and injuring rider

TV presenter Holly Willoughby has been fined in court after she admitted driving without due care and attention when her car collided with a moped, injuring the rider.

The star, 44, pleaded guilty by post to the charge at Lavender Hill Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday but did not attend the hearing.

Willoughby was fined £1,653 alongside £130 in costs and a £661 victim surcharge and given six points on her licence, the Metropolitan Police said.

According to court documents, the incident happened on 28 August as she was driving her Mini Cooper near her home in Richmond, southwest London.

Police were called to Church Road, Barnes, following reports of a collision.

The rider of the moped, a 43-year-old man, was taken to hospital. His injuries were assessed as neither life-threatening nor life-changing.

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The presenter is best known for fronting Dancing On Ice as well as ITV daytime show This Morning, which she left in October 2023.

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Sabrina Carpenter hits out at ‘evil and disgusting’ White House video featuring her song

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December 2, 2025

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Sabrina Carpenter hits out at 'evil and disgusting' White House video featuring her song

Sabrina Carpenter has hit out at an “evil and disgusting” White House video of migrants being detained that uses one of her songs.

“Do not ever involve me or my music to benefit your inhumane agenda,” the pop star posted on X.

The White House used part of Carpenter‘s upbeat song Juno over pictures of immigration agents handcuffing, chasing and detaining people.

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It was posted on social media on Monday and has been viewed 1.2 million times so far.

President Trump‘s policy of sending officers into communities to forcibly round up illegal immigrants has proved controversial, with protests and legal challenges ongoing.

Mr Trump promised the biggest deportation in US history, but some of those detained have been living and working in the US for decades and have no criminal record.

Carpenter is not the only star to express disgust over the administration’s use of their music.

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Olivia Rodrigo last month warned the White House not to “ever use my songs to promote your racist, hateful propaganda” after All-American Bitch was used in a video urging undocumented migrants to leave voluntarily.

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In July, English singer Jess Glynne also said she felt “sick” when her song from the viral Jet2 advert was used over footage of people in handcuffs being loaded on a plane.

Other artists have also previously hit out at Trump officials for using their music at political campaign events, including Guns N’ Roses, Foo Fighters, Celine Dion, Ozzy Osbourne and The Rolling Stones.

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Dame Joanna Lumley warns of ‘crisis hidden in plain sight’ – with 1.5 million older people set to spend Christmas alone

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22 hours ago

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December 2, 2025

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Dame Joanna Lumley has warned of a “crisis hidden in plain sight”, with 1.5 million older people set to spend Christmas alone.

Age UK spoke to more than 2,600 people and found 11% will eat dinner alone on 25 December, while 5% will not see or speak to anyone the whole day.

Applied to the overall population, the findings suggest 1.5 million people will eat alone at Christmas, according to the charity.

Dame Joanna said the “silence can be deafening” for those left isolated and called it “a crisis hidden in plain sight”.

The actor and campaigner is now joining other luminaries including Dame Judi Dench, Brian Cox and Miriam Margolyes to back Age UK’s campaign against loneliness.

The charity says its volunteers made more than 70,000 minutes’ worth of calls to people during Christmas week last year and is urging people to donate.

‘A tragedy we don’t talk about enough’

Age UK said it also supports coffee mornings and festive lunches to give lonely people the chance to enjoy in-person interaction.

Dame Judi said: “For so many older people, Christmas can be a time of silence – days without conversation or company.”

Succession star Brian Cox called the issue “a tragedy we don’t talk about enough”.

He said: “Far too many older people are left spending the season in silence, when it should be a time of warmth, connection and joy.”

Brian Cox is another of the campaign's high-profile backers. Pic: PA
Image:
Brian Cox is another of the campaign’s high-profile backers. Pic: PA

Margolyes, of Harry Potter fame, added: “Growing older shouldn’t mean disappearing into the background, we need to be seen, heard and celebrated.

“That’s what Age UK is striving for – they’re changing how we perceive age.”

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The charity’s chief executive, Paul Farmer, said: “Your donation could bring comfort, friendship, and care to an older person facing loneliness this winter.

“From friendly, weekly calls to local lunch clubs, we’re here to make sure no one spends winter alone. But we can’t do it without you.”

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