Summary

  • Kevin Spacey tells a jury that the allegations against him are either "madness", "make no logical sense", or are a "stab in the back"

  • The Hollywood actor says he is "big flirt" and describes his encounters with two of the alleged victims as "comfortable", while insisting "nothing happened" with a third

  • Spacey says an aspiring actor's claims that he drugged him and performed a sex act on him while he was asleep are false

  • The actor accepts touching a man but tells the court: "It did not happen in a violent, aggressive, painful way"

  • Spacey gets emotional in the witness box as he describes how he lost his job after an article was published with allegations against him

  • The actor denies 12 sex offences against four men between 2001 and 2013

  • All four accusers are entitled to lifelong anonymity under the law

  • The trial continues

  1. Until tomorrowpublished at 15:56 BST 13 July 2023

    Nathan Williams
    Live reporter

    We're going to close shop now, thanks for following along.

    As we've been reporting, Kevin Spacey will be cross-examined by the prosecution tomorrow - and we'll be back to bring you live updates throughout.

    Today's page was produced by myself and Sam Hancock, here at New Broadcasting House, and written by our colleagues Michael Sheils Mcnamee and Frankie McCamley from Southwark Crown Court.

  2. Why we’re not naming alleged victimspublished at 15:49 BST 13 July 2023

    Helena Wilkinson
    News correspondent

    You might notice throughout our coverage that we are not naming the four complainants.

    That’s because we are not allowed to legally.

    Anyone who is alleged to be the victim of a sexual offence is automatically legally entitled to lifelong anonymity.

    That means it is a criminal offence for the media - or anyone else - to publish their name or anything which identifies them.

    This applies to posting on social media too.

  3. What we learnt todaypublished at 15:35 BST 13 July 2023

    The first day of Kevin Spacey giving evidence in this trial - which sees him accused of 12 sex offences against four men between 2001 and 2013 - has come to an end.

    Here are some of the key takeaways.

    • He told a jury at Southwark Crown Court, London, that the allegations against him are either "madness", "make no logical sense", or are a "stab in the back"
    • The 63-year-old said he is a "big flirt" and described his encounters with two of the alleged victims as "comfortable" or "relaxed", while insisting "nothing happened" with a third
    • Spacey also said an aspiring actor's claims that he drugged him and performed a sex act on him while he was asleep in his flat were false, saying the pair had shared an "intimate moment"
    • In one of the cases, the actor said he and the alleged victim did not take things further because the man "made it clear that he did not want to go any further" which he respected
    • The actor accepted touching the man but told the court: "It did not happen in a violent, aggressive, painful way. It was gentle and it was in my mind romantic"
    • He also spoke about his decision to come out as gay, saying he had been pressured to do so, and claimed he had lost out on work and money since the first allegations were made againt him

    The trial continues.

  4. Court ends for the daypublished at 15:20 BST 13 July 2023

    Court sketch of Patrick Gibbs KC
    Image caption,

    Today Spacey was questioned by his own lawyer, Patrick Gibbs KC (pictured), but tomorrow he'll be grilled by the prosecution

    That's it, court proceedings have finished for today.

    The jury will return at 10:00 BST tomorrow for cross-examination of Spacey by the prosecution.

  5. Spacey grilled about moneypublished at 15:17 BST 13 July 2023

    Frankie McCamley and Jeremy Britton
    Reporting from Southwark Crown Court

    In the last few minutes, the defence asked an emotional Spacey: "Were you once a rich man?"

    Here's a look at the questioning that followed.

    Spacey: "I have been very fortunate in the career I have had, yes."

    Gibbs (his lawyer): "Are you a rich man now?"

    Spacey: "No sir."

    Asked where the money was, Spacey said: "I have had no money coming in and a lot of legal bills and things to fight against. I had not paid it all off so I still owe money."

    Spacey said that when the British police wanted to interview him he had agreed to be interviewed and the police had come to the USA.

    Gibbs: "After the interview did you expect to be charged?"

    Spacey: “No."

    Gibbs: "Did you say anything to the police about what you would do if you were charged?"

    Spacey: "Yes."

    Gibbs: "What did you say?"

    Spacey: "That I would come back to London and defend myself in a court of law."

    Gibbs: "Is that what you have done?"

    Spacey: "Yes."

  6. LGBT community had pressured me to come out - Spaceypublished at 15:09 BST 13 July 2023

    Michael Sheils McNamee
    Reporting from Southwark Crown Court

    Spacey has become tearful again.

    He speaks about planning to reveal his sexuality. "I had been talking about coming out for two years," he says. "I wanted to do it at a particular event.”

    He adds: “The [LGBT] community had been pressuring me for a very long time about coming out."

  7. Spacey responds to criticism about when he came out as gaypublished at 15:09 BST 13 July 2023

    Michael Sheils McNamee
    Reporting from Southwark Crown Court

    Moving on, Spacey now addresses the response to his statement regarding allegations against him - at which time he also came out as gay.

    "Members of the LGBT community were upset, because I came out while I was responding to an allegation. Now I understand why it was read that way. I had been talking for two years about how I was going to come out," he says.

    Spacey goes on: “It wasn’t that this story suddenly made me want to come out... I thought in the face of this terrible accusation [I could do something positive]."

    He becomes emotional at this point and says to Patrick Gibbs KC, his lawyer, that he is not a wealthy man now and has not been able to work.

  8. Spacey gets emotional in witness boxpublished at 15:05 BST 13 July 2023

    Frankie McCamley
    Reporting from Southwark Crown Court

    Spacey is getting tearful in the dock as he describes how he lost his job after an article was published with allegations against him.

    "I lost everything in a matter of days," he says, as we detailed in our last post.

    In regards to sponsorship deals, he says “they were all abandoned” and claims he has not been able to work for the last five or six years.

    The actor becomes emotional when he talks about the “courageous producers and filmmakers” who had given him work.

  9. 'I lost everything in a matter of days'published at 15:04 BST 13 July 2023

    Frankie McCamley
    Reporting from Southwark Crown Court

    Spacey is asked about what happened to him when the first accusations were made against him.

    “My world exploded,” he says.

    “I lost my job, I lost my reputation, I lost everything in a matter of days.”

  10. Complainant offered to withdraw from case for money - Spaceypublished at 14:46 BST 13 July 2023

    Michael Sheils McNamee
    Reporting from Southwark Crown Court

    The court hears how Spacey later received an email from the complainant - mentioned in our last few posts - through an email address on his website.

    It offered to withdraw from the case in return for a settlement, Spacey says.

  11. When complainant wasn't interested, I stopped - Spaceypublished at 14:43 BST 13 July 2023

    Michael Sheils McNamee
    Reporting from Southwark Crown Court

    Spacey now tells the court he has "no issue with [the alleged victim] testified to".

    "I made a pass and I am only happy that he testified that the moment he told me he wasn’t interested, I stopped," the actor tells the court.

    Spacey also says he does not remember going back to the pub where the complainant worked the next day, but accepts that he did based on witness testimony and was probably doing so to apologise.

  12. 'Hanging out with younger people makes me feel young'published at 14:28 BST 13 July 2023

    Michael Sheils McNamee
    Reporting from Southwark Crown Court

    Spacey says the group he was with on the night in question was “pretty young”.

    “I love hanging with a group of young people,” he tells the court, adding it makes him feel young and he is interested in what they have to say.

    He says he is not sure how many people went back [to this flat], but he does not believe it was 20 people as has been stated and was closer to 10.

    He said the night "got rowdier" as it went on and he has a memory of asking people to quieten down and subsequently leave.

  13. Spacey details how fame impacts relationshipspublished at 14:27 BST 13 July 2023

    Michael Sheils McNamee
    Reporting from Southwark Crown Court

    Spacey is now reflecting on how his fame can affect his interactions with people.

    He says he tries to take away the effect of his fame when he meets people, and does "everything I can do to make that disappear".

    On the night Spacey met this complainant, he talks about a photograph of himself being taken.

    "When then suddenly [someone] takes a camera… it makes me feel exposed, and makes me feel like now the dynamic has changed," he says.

    The actor goes on: "It's perfectly alright [when someone wants to take a picture with me], and I’m perfectly happy to take them… quite clearly in that circumstance [judging by] my reaction, it changed the mood."

  14. Spacey recalls people 'drinking and smoking cannabis'published at 14:25 BST 13 July 2023

    Michael Sheils McNamee
    Reporting from Southwark Crown Court

    On the evening in question, Spacey says "drink was taken" by everyone and cannabis was smoked by "pretty much everyone".

    Spacey says he is "terrible" at rolling joints, and pre-rolled joints in his apartment were not rolled by him.

    He says he remembers some of the details after seeing the complainant's interview video, but doesn’t have a clear memory about conversations which would have taken place.

  15. Lawyer moves on to allegations made by another complainantpublished at 14:19 BST 13 July 2023

    Michael Sheils McNamee
    Reporting from Southwark Crown Court

    Spacey’s barrister begins this session by moving on to allegations made by another complainant, with the actor answering questions about his dog.

    The next complainant claims he came into contact with Spacey while he was working in a pub.

    Part of his evidence relates to Spacey’s dog, Mini.

    Spacey now gives evidence about where he would have kept his dog on the evening in question, and said he would have kept his dog in an upstairs bedroom.

  16. Court about to restartpublished at 14:03 BST 13 July 2023

    Everyone at court has had their lunch and proceedings will be starting again shortly.

    Kevin Spacey has returned to court, our colleagues inside the room tell us.

    Stay with us for the latest.

    Court sketch of Kevin Spacey
    Image caption,

    Cameras aren't allowed for most UK court hearings - that's why we rely on sketches to depict what's going on

  17. Why we’re not naming alleged victimspublished at 14:00 BST 13 July 2023

    Helena Wilkinson
    News correspondent

    You might notice throughout our coverage that we are not naming the four complainants.

    That’s because we are not allowed to legally.

    Anyone who is alleged to be the victim of a sexual offence is automatically legally entitled to lifelong anonymity.

    That means it is a criminal offence for the media - or anyone else - to publish their name or anything which identifies them.

    This applies to posting on social media too.

  18. What's been happening?published at 13:51 BST 13 July 2023

    US actor Kevin SpaceyImage source, EPA

    Oscar-winning actor Kevin Spacey has been giving evidence at Southwark Crown Court, where he's on trial for 12 sex offences against four men between 2001 and 2013. He denies all charges.

    Here's what you need to know from this morning's session:

    • Spacey told a jury he was “somewhat intimate” with one of his alleged sexual assault victims - but denied touching him in a “violent, aggressive, painful way”
    • He also admitted to being a “big flirt” and said he felt “crushed” that a man - one of the alleged victims - would “stab me in the back” by making these claims so many years after they knew each other
    • Accused of grabbing one of the complainants so hard that he nearly drove the pair off the road, Spacey said this incident “never happened” - adding: “I was not on a suicide mission"
    • Spacey also told the jury that allegations made by one of the men - that he allegedly met at a theatre in the mid-2000s - were “madness”
    • “I never said any of the things that he claims I said to him and wouldn't and never have to anyone in my life," he told the court
    • The actor said he touched one complainant in “romantic” and “intimate” ways - but respected the man's decision not to take their relationship any further
    • Asked by his barrister if there was any reluctance from the alleged victim to his advances, Spacey said: “No, the only thing he made clear is he did not want to go any further than we were going and I respected that"

    We'll be back with more when court has resumed after lunch, stay tuned.

  19. Court breaks for lunch...published at 13:06 BST 13 July 2023

    ...we'll be back with more when the trial resumes.

  20. Spacey tells court he performed sex act on complainantpublished at 13:06 BST 13 July 2023

    Michael Sheils McNamee
    Reporting from Southwark Crown Court

    Spacey tells the court: “I believe I performed [a sex act] on him.”