Doctor Who star, Noel Clarke, took action against the publishing group Guardian News and Media (GNM) over allegations of sexual misconduct, which he denies
Actor, Noel Clarke, has been declared bankrupt after losing his libel trial following allegations of sexual misconduct.
The Doctor Who star, 50, has been ordered to pay at least £3 million of the Guardian News group’s legal costs after he pursued what a High Court Judge labelled as a “far-fetched and indeed a false case” against the newspaper’s reporting of allegations made about the actor of sexual misconduct, which he denies.
Clarke, who also wrote the screenplay for film, Kidulthood, lost his libel case against The Guardian following a series of articles that included claims from a number of women. Following the verdict last year, the actor issued a statement, saying: “Today’s result is disappointing. For almost five years, I have fought against a powerful media outlet and its extensive legal teams over inaccurate and damaging reporting.”
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He continued: “These stories started via anonymous emails portraying me as a monster to attract attention and outrage. The goal was to damage my career, and they succeeded.” Before declaring bankruptcy, Clarke was set to have to pay up to £6m after the Guardian told the court the fee was a conservative estimate of their legal bills.
An initial £3m legal costs fee was due late last year, but Clarke filed for bankruptcy in December. The actor, who lives in London, was formally declared bankrupt on December 11 2025. GNM published seven articles and a podcast, including an article in April 2021, which said 20 women who knew Clarke in a professional capacity had come forward with allegations of misconduct against him.
GNM defended its reporting as being both true and in the public interest and in a judgment in August, judge Mrs Justice Steyn agreed. Dismissing Clarke’s claim in a judgment, she said the newspaper had “succeeded in establishing both truth and public interest defences to the libel claim”.
At a High Court hearing in September, Steyn said Clarke must pay £3m before a further assessment into the total costs, which is estimated to be above £6m. She said: “It seems to me that the sum of £3m sought by the defendant is appropriate and no more than what ought to be reasonably ordered in this case.
“The claimant maintained a far-fetched and indeed a false case that the articles were not substantially true, by pursuing allegations of dishonesty and bad faith against almost all of the defendant’s truth witnesses.”
In March 2022, the Metropolitan Police confirmed it would not launch a criminal investigation into the claims against Clarke. However, Clarke launched a libel case accusing The Guardian of defamation and data protection breaches. Opening Mr Clarke’s case at trial on March 7, barrister Philip Williams, for the actor, said The Guardian acted as the “judge, jury and executioner” of Mr Clarke’s career.
He also said that The Guardian’s stories “had more holes than a colander” and that Mr Clarke “is absolutely not, and never has been, a sexual predator”. GNM defended its reporting as both true and in the public interest. Gavin Millar KC, for the publisher, told the court in written submissions that The Guardian “did not simply accept what was said to it” and that “much time and resource was devoted to getting to the truth”.
Source: Mirror
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