Laurence Fox says he was financially ‘destroyed’ by racism allegations

Former GB News presenter Laurence Fox‘s life was ‘destroyed’ by ‘hurtful’ racism allegations and was left unable to get a mortgage, the actor has informed the High Court.

The actor and right-wing activist is being sued by Simon Blake, a former trustee of the LGBT+ charity Stonewall and drag queen Colin Seymour, generally known as Crystal, for calling them ‘paedophiles’ on Twitter.

Fox, 45, founding father of the Reclaim Party, is counter-suing the pair and Coronation Street actress Nicola Thorp, 35, after they branded him a ‘racist’ in response to a submit by Sainsbury’s celebrating Black History Month in October 2020.

The Lewis star claimed that by 2020 he was incomes no less than £500,000 to £600,000 per 12 months from performing, however his ‘life was destroyed by what they did’ after the feedback had been made in direction of him.  

He stated his ex-wife Billie Piper was ‘involved’ that their two kids had been now not protected in the home, including: ‘I believed she had each proper to really feel that manner, each mom could be frightened.’

The actor additionally stated his skilled life was ‘irreparably harmed’, with the lack of his former performing agent Sue Latimer. His revenue additionally dropped dramatically which meant he could not get a mortgage and he confronted comparable points to Nigel Farage being ‘debanked’, Fox added. 

Mr Fox, who denies being a racist, stated in his written proof he was ‘horrified’ when he noticed he had been known as a racist, which he later described as ‘a career-ending phrase, and a reputation-destroying allegation’.

He continued: ‘It was very hurtful, firstly as it isn’t true, and secondly as a result of it was baseless: it felt as if the claimants had posted it to try to destroy me. I felt that one of the crucial essential issues I had on this world was my good identify, and so they had been making an attempt to break it.’

The courtroom heard that on two events after the declare in opposition to him was filed, faeces had been posted by means of Mr Fox’s door.

Mr Fox stated: ‘Without the prospect of labor from her and the revenue from it, I could not get a mortgage.

‘The solely revenue I earned at that time was from the Reclaim Party. To at the present time I have never purchased a home, I solely obtained one mortgage supply very not too long ago, and it was far too excessive and would not have been price my whereas to take it.’

Mr Fox later stated he has confronted comparable points to Nigel Farage being ‘debanked’, along with his financial institution ‘usually questioning’ respectable transactions and claimed his automotive insurance coverage premium elevated by practically £9,000.

He added in his witness proof he had a ‘vibrant and busy’ work life earlier than the tweets and earlier than Ms Latimer dropped him, he was requested to audition for roles together with Batman and Succession, and ‘a number of different Netflix, Disney+ and HBO productions’.

He continued: ‘It’s a supply of unbelievable unhappiness to me that my ability set, which has been extremely educated, used at nice size over 23 or 24 years – it is simply been utterly put away.’

Fox informed the courtroom that Latimer parted methods with him after the Twitter spat. He stated his agent had known as him after the tweets and stated the allegations had been a problem.

Ms Skinner requested if he had regarded into his contract along with her after the dialog.

‘I’ll have checked out it to see if she was allowed to do it however I did not pursue that – I used to be simply pretty flabbergasted that she had completed that,’ he stated.

Stephanie Kowalski, Fox’s private assistant between 2020 and 2022, informed the courtroom in the present day she had heard the cellphone dialog.

She stated Ms Latimer had informed Fox the ‘current allegations’ in opposition to him had been a problem and that ladies in her workplace had been speaking about it. 

Ms Kowalski stated Fox, who was previously married to Doctor Who actress Billie Piper, was ‘upset and in shock’ after the decision.

Fox informed the courtroom he studied at Harrow and utilized for universities by means of clearing earlier than going to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.

He stated he would use Twitter to deal with points he cared about.

‘I might make statements about points that concern me and definitely something to do with free speech I might interact with and primarily cultural problems with the day I used to be eager about.’

He stated he prevented replies to his tweets.

‘My timeline and replies is a dumpster hearth of fairly horrible stuff more often than not so I try to stay away from it.’

Ms Skinner stated Fox grew to become extra standard on Twitter in October 2020, gaining 12.3k followers.

She stated his followers tripled after his controversial look on the BBC’s Question Time in January 2020.

Ms Kowalski stated she had begun working for Fox after after messaging his new Reclaim occasion in October 2020.

She stated there have been no performing roles coming ahead for Fox after the Twitter row.

‘There was no performing roles coming ahead, there was an impartial movie that was talked about however nothing got here by means of,’ she stated.

Earlier within the trial, Lorna Skinner KC, representing Mr Blake, Mr Seymour and Ms Thorp, stated the trio ‘truthfully believed, and proceed truthfully to consider, that Mr Fox is a racist’.

In written submissions, the barrister stated Mr Fox ‘has made plenty of extremely controversial statements about race’, including: ‘If and to the extent that Mr Fox has been harmed in his status, it’s his personal conduct and never the claimants’ feedback on it that triggered that hurt.’

In his proof discussing his name for a boycott of Sainsbury’s, Mr Fox stated the grocery store had been ‘basically emotionally blackmailing their clients’ and that he has not shopped there since.

He continued: ‘I felt that relatively than genuinely making an attempt to sort out racism, Sainsbury’s had been making an attempt to enhance their very own picture, branding themselves because the anti-racist grocery store.

‘I see the phrase ‘protected area’ as simply regionally pleasant language for discrimination by segregation, dividing folks down the road of pores and skin color.’

Mr Fox added that he believes Black History Month is ‘a grift, designed to make black folks really feel like they’re in a roundabout way undervalued in our society’ and known as the Black Lives Matter motion ‘extraordinarily divisive’.

Ms Skinner beforehand highlighted a number of of Mr Fox’s social media posts, together with a June 2022 tweet of 4 satisfaction flags organized within the form of a swastika.

‘Such a disgusting submit might solely be made by an entire ignoramus or an clever racist with an agenda. Mr Fox is the latter,’ she stated.

However, Mr Fox stated he doesn’t have an issue with folks of various sexualities, including: ‘The streets of London are coated with the Pride flag, but no person is allowed to criticise it.

‘I used to be making the purpose that the one different flag in historical past that society was not allowed to criticise was the Nazi flag.

‘I’m clearly a serious advocate without cost speech so don’t consider it’s proper we must always dwell in worry of being cancelled for arguing with a flag.’

Fox claims he known as the pair paedophiles as a ‘baseless and meaningless’ insult in response to them ‘baselessly’ calling him racist whereas Seymour and Blake declare the insult was based mostly on homophobic tropes.

Thorp, pregnant along with her first baby, in the present day wore a black gown, pink jacket and pink and pink coat sat subsequent to Blake and Seymour.

She was accompanied by her husband actor Nikesh Patel.

Seymour, a contestant in season one of many BBC3 present RuPaul’s Drag Race UK, wore a black turtle neck and black nail varnish.

The trial, earlier than Mrs Justice Collins Rice, continues. It is because of conclude later this week with a choice anticipated at a later date.