Father Ted creator Graham Linehan is facing trial at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, accused of harassing transgender activist Sophia Brooks.
He has denied one count of harassing the activist on social media and a further charge of damaging her mobile phone in October.
Proceedings were delayed this morning due to technical difficulties playing video evidence in the court.
Linehan sat behind glass in the dock, dressed in a grey blazer and white shirt. Court staff gave him an ear piece so he could properly hear proceedings.
Both sides agreed that Linehan’s counsel will refer to the complainant as a man, and prosecution will refer to the complainant by female pronouns. The judge warned those in the public gallery not to react to the use of pronouns.
Mr Linehan, who created Father Ted in the 1990s with fellow Irish writer Arthur Mathews, said in a post on X in April that the allegations were related to an incident at the Battle of Ideas conference in London on October 19th.
According to court documents, he is charged with harassing the alleged victim by posting abusive comments about her on social media between October 11th and October 27th, and damaging her phone to the value of £369 on the day of the conference.
In May, following a hearing in the case, Mr Linehan said he has “lost a great deal” but “will not waver in my resolve”.
The Bafta-winning writer, who also came up with TV sitcoms The IT Crowd and Black Books, was arrested at Heathrow airport on Monday on suspicion of inciting violence in three posts he had made on X about trans issues.
The arrest has sparked debate – with opposition politicians and Harry Potter author JK Rowling among those who have criticised the move, while the Metropolitan Police commissioner Mark Rowley said his officers are in “an impossible position” when dealing with statements made online, and should not be “policing toxic culture wars debates”. – Additional reporting by PA