UK actor-director-producer Noel Clarke allegedly groped his colleague in an elevator and exposed himself to her in a car, according to testimony from a Guardian witness in Clarke’s libel claim against the UK newspaper today at London’s High Court.
Gina Powell was part of Clarke’s production company Unstoppable between 2014 and 2017.
She has accused Clarke of groping her in an elevator after a trip to Los Angeles in 2015. In a witness statement, Powell described the incident as “something I had to bear and carry every day”.
“I was so shocked and heartbroken, someone I called my big brother, that he would do that to his little sister, I felt so heartbroken, so violated,” she continued. “It was one of the worst moments of my life.”
After the trip, in which Powell also alleges Clarke exposed himself to her while driving, the relationship is said to have deteriorated.
Clarke was said to be angry when Powell took a bar job because she was struggling for money, Powell told the court. She said he “manipulated” her with money, such as choosing when to pay for lunch.
Powell also said that she was “walking on eggshells around [Clarke]” following the 2015 trip and was having to send him blog posts of porn because Clarke kept demanding conversations about sex.
In his witness statement, Clarke said Powell often sent him links to porn websites and discussed her “sexual exploits” with him.
Representing Clarke, Philip Williams suggested Powell had a financial grudge against him and that her allegations were motivated by “driven, I suggest, by hate”.
“No, I was putting a line in the sand, trying really hard to distance myself and get my life back,” Powell responded.
She later continued: “I don’t think he should be around young women in the film industry. I don’t think he should be around young women in any industry.”
Clarke is suing Guardian News and Media (GNM), 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.
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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