GUILTY UK - Rolf Harris for molesting underage girls, child *advertiser censored*, 2013

[zwiebel]

Rolf's daughter Bindi Nicholls testified today that it was 'laughable and ridiculous' that her friend could have been assaulted while she slept in the same room.

She also said her friend never told her the first 'sexual encounter' with Harris was when she was 13.

Prosecution suggested Bindi colluded with her father over the date of
their move to Bray, to bolster his defence.

Video of the Cambridge TV show at the link.

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-27663966

ETA: Just wanted to point out the terminology of 'sexual encounter' is the BBC's phraseology, not mine.

 

[zwiebel]

The judge rebuked Rolf Harris today, telling him this is 'not a verbal joust'. I think he asked the prosecutor if she was making a snide comment or something.

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/uk-world-news/rolf-harris-trial-recap-updates-3635278

 

[Mrs G Norris]

Rolf Harris trial: film footage shows entertainer visited Cambridge and took part in celebrity game show

ROLF Harris has been accused of telling “deliberate lies” after old film footage was found that placed him in the area where he said he had never been nor sexually assaulted a 13-year-old girl.

The 84-year-old entertainer had told Southwark Crown Court last week that he had never been to Cambridge before four years ago and had never taken part in a celebrity sport game show in the UK now or in the 1970s.

But after he made that statement last week a member of the public contacted police to say they recalled a celebrity TV sports games in that city in 1978 that starred Harris.
Prosecutors then found the Thames Television network footage of the show.

http://www.news.com.au/world/rolf-h...lebrity-game-show/story-fndir2ev-122694071595

 

[Supernovae]

http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/...ebrity-game-show/story-fnihsmjt-1226940715951

Mr Harris also said he had “no recollection of the man” Tony Porter who starred alongside him in an ABC show called Rolf.

The Australian actor Porter earlier alleged in court he saw Harris grab the breasts of a makeup artist in the 1980s that was “excessive even by the standards of the era”.

Harris maintained he had never heard of Porter but then Ms Wass showed the jury footage of the pair sharing the screen in one of many comedy sketches from the program.

In a clip shown in court on Monday June 2, Rolf Harris is the star of his own TV show on the ABC, titled 'Rolf'.
Harris agreed he was there with Porter but said he had no idea why the man would lie about the make up artist.

 

[Mrs G Norris]

You know what, if you're going to lie you really ought to do it at key times, and not just blanket lie the entire case .. he's done himself no favours up there, none. Perhaps he's trying to look like a dottery old fool, in the hope that everyone will just laugh the whole case off and say 'oh let him go, the silly old goat' .. really.

John Laws is ripping him a new one right now, I'm becoming obsessed with John Laws .. may he never put down that golden mike

 

[Ausgirl]

Where are headlines saying "Witness lied about age?"

1978 puts her at 17, if she was 14 in 1975 as reported.

The video footage bolsters her story of groping, but by bumping her age up by three years it also -seriously- undermines the charge of child molestation.

Where's the media reports regarding that fact?

 

[Mrs G Norris]

Aren't the charges indecent assault? Don't think that means she has to be underage.

 

[Ausgirl]

You're right, Mrs. G.

I actually find myself hoping that Rolf is charged with at least one count of indecent behaviour, as I tend to believe several of the women who've come forward. And I'm SO disgusted and angry with him for blaming BF for the affair, his see-through blanket denial approach and a few other things.

Which might look at odds with how vociferous I've been regarding the holes in the stories of those claiming child molestation. But lying about that makes me see red, too. As does the obvious media habit of reporting loudly (and at times inaccurately) re the smallest perceived lack in truth/admission of guilt in the accused, while keeping general silence when an accuser's story doesn't add up.

I'd be right now more inclined to believe 'Cambridge woman' if she hadn't pushed her age back three years, a mistake I think would be very hard to make unless there's some neurological condition rendering her incapable of contextualising her memories (ie, this event did not happen in a bubble of time, there must be associated memories that would help her place herself in the correct age bracket -- a gap of three years is huge).

I have to wonder if Yewtree helped her do that.

 

[Supernovae]

I have to wonder if Yewtree helped her do that.

I do wonder if there was an element of that. Up until last week nobody knew about Star Games, the whole case was built around the 1975 filming of Celebrity It's a Knockout (when, as it turns out, RH was in Canada). If the woman originally came forward with a vague time period around mid teens (which might not be so far fetched, a lot of my early teens just blurs into one, and that might well be the case for her if she had a generally sheltered and monotonous adolescence), she may have been given "help" to pin it down to the lower end of that period around the IaK filming. Memory is surprisingly malleable so I can see how you might come to believe "well, it must have been 1975, mustn't it?"

 

[Mrs G Norris]

Character witness said Rolf Harris ‘loves to hug’, court told

THAT was the message from a string of character witnesses for the 84-year-old who told Southwark Crown Court the hugs were in no way sexual or lurid but rather were tactile and in keeping with the industry.

A number of former stars of the stage and screen gave evidence yesterday in the trial of Harris who has pleaded not guilty to 12 charges of indecent assault over a 20 year period.

He hugged boys and girls alike and he liked to flatter “curvy girls” but none of it was sexual his friends and former co-stars said.

http://www.news.com.au/world/europe...o-hug-court-told/story-fnh81p7g-1226942146670

 

[zwiebel]

Rolf Harris would 'run away' from giggling girls, a friend testified today.

Joanne Charles, daughter of 70s singer Don Charles, said that 'he's a great hugger' but answered that it was 'absolutely not' the case that they were sexual.

(Me) Sorry, I can't help laughing but this defence witness also said that when she was a teen, Harris would say: "Goodness, you have such lovely curves, you are a lovely girl."

Who needs enemies when you have friends like this, uh?

http://news.sky.com/story/1274463/rolf-harris-would-run-away-from-giggling-girls

 

[zwiebel]

Don Charles, in case anyone's wondering.

http://youtu.be/58Kkd3HTI5s

 

[Mrs G Norris]

Oh LOL!! Yes I remember when I was about 15 years old a vet me and my friend both had a crush on said something to me about never changing and keeping my lovely figure .. I thought it was just a compliment .. skip to about 6 months later and I receive the most hard core 'come on' letter I have ever received in my life .. seriously, it's not freaking normal, and I doubt this kind of testimony is helping much. Just shows how blind people can be.

 

[Ausgirl]

Well, in contrast - and having both 'developed' early and been a victim of serious sexual abuse, having a 'radar' for creepy behaviour before I left primary school...

I *constantly* heard comments on my figure from adult men, my friend's dads (and mums), family members, people in the street for goodness' sake. I never found my friend's dad's comments creepy, that intention just wasn't there, It was a time before everyone got touchy about what was 'appropriate', the 70's was still very much a man's world and people just didn't think too much about it, unless there was a direct cause for suspicion.

Trust me, I was hypervigilant. I *knew* when people were angling for sleaze, or a grope.

The teacher who kept wearing those brief-but-baggy swimming trunks so his junk 'accidentally' slipped out a lot when he sat on the edge of the pool and gave us instructions? Yeah, that was creepy.

People's dads making jokes or comments about my enormous 12-yo rack was hideously embarrassing, but I never found it threatening. And it happened, a lot.

 

[Ausgirl]

One of my friend's dads used to call me "*advertiser censored*". I just remembered, just now!

"How's it goin', *advertiser censored*?" And that was meant to be funny. Not bad or creepy. These were really nice people. Today it might not wash well, but in the 70's, it was perfectly okay for grown men to comment like that, particularly in Australia I think.

Anyway:

The main complainant, behind seven of the charges in the case, was a childhood friend of Bindi. She claims Rolf first abused her at age 13, grooming her for an adult relationship and triggering her descent into ruin and alcoholism.

But Bindi took the stand on Monday to describe a very different person: a happy, outgoing, socially active teenager and young woman whose ''descent'' began much later. Crucially, Bindi denied being told by the woman that Rolf had abused her.

Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/national/r...s-sex-trial-20140603-39gyc.html#ixzz33ea0oSCA


It sounds to me like a fit of jealousy. It might have been that Rolf called it off with BF but didn't explain why. Bindi's mentioning boatshed lady provided her with an answer, one she didn't like. So she picks --that-- moment (after a decade of sleeping with Bindi's dad) to tell her friend about the affair. Vindictive? It sure could've been.

 

[Supernovae]

"Just shows how blind people can be."

I think it can be blindness through naivety, particularly when you're younger. This sort of thing can be quite subtle and pretends to be innocent but it's never appropriate for much older men to be commenting on young girls bodies, and the over-familiar "hugginess" I think shows a disrespect for the other persons boundaries. It's plausible deniability creeping.

 

[zwiebel]

There's an oddly written article here about the trial. Starts off by saying that TV presenter Sue Cook 'took to twitter', on Monday, but then quotes her testifying at the trial. Maybe it's just me.

Anyway, she told the court she couldn't remember being in Cambridge either for the games show either (though she was) and thought it was unfair to criticise Harris for not remembering. They were just 'bussed in' she says.

A former agent of Harris's spoke via video link from Australia too. He said he had always seen Harris as a gentleman, and refused to say anything about any xtra-marital affairs as they were none of his business.

The defence has now closed.

http://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/New...he-was-in-Cambridge-either-20140605151159.htm

 

[zwiebel]

Forgot to add, Sue Cook is a former Crimewatch presenter. For non Brits, that's a popular crime-stopper/reconstruction show.

 

[Mrs G Norris]

Rolf Harris called a sinister deviant as prosecution urges jury not to be blinded by his fame

She said Harris had written in the letter and later told police the relationship with the woman when she was 18 stemmed from “a feeling of love and friendship” but Ms Wass said forget “the Mills and Boon scenario”, Harris had already admitted in court the pair had eight sexual encounters and never once spoke to each other. It was all done silently, no affection, no regular couples type contact, they both just got on with “clinical gynaecological sex” with no lead up, interaction or any hint there was a relationship or passionate affair.

“He just used her for his sexual gratification like she was a blow-up doll,” she told the jury, adding the victim was so isolated and vulnerable she acted “clinically” like a prostitute or to perform like a pet.

“This was not a consensual relationship,” she said.

http://www.news.com.au/world/rolf-h...nded-by-his-fame/story-fndir2ev-1226949890773

 

[Ausgirl]

I wonder how he got her to drive hours and hours across the country to have "non-consensual" sex with him when Bindi wasn't even there.

Hypnotic wobble-board sounds over the phone?

The woman was in contact with Rolf maybe twice a year for a brief number of days, after the families moved apart. I cannot see him 'training' her (as claimed) in that brief amount of time, or having much opportunity to groom her either, into the state whereby she'd do just that, drive across the country as an adult --of 29 yrs old-- to have sex with him.