"Father Ted co-creator Graham Linehan has arrived at court to face trial, accused of harassing a transgender woman. The 57-year-old has denied harassing transgender activist Sophia Brooks on social media and a further charge of damaging her mobile phone in October. The Bafta-winning writer, who also came up with TV sitcoms The IT Crowd and Black Books, has become a strong vocal critic of the trans rights movement in recent years. His trial will begin at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Thursday."
"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 19 October 2024. According to court documents, he is charged with harassing the alleged victim by posting abusive comments about her on social media between 11 and 27 October, and damaging her phone, to the value of 369, on the day of the conference."
"Before going into court on Thursday, the writer posed with a sign which said on one side There's no such thing as a transgender child'. On the other, it said Keep men out of women's sports. On Monday, Linehan was arrested at Heathrow Airport on suspicion of inciting violence in three posts he had made on X about trans issues. Following the incident, Sir Keir Starmer ordered police to prioritise serious crimes, saying he had made his priorities for policing clear."
Graham Linehan arrived at court to face charges alleging harassment of transgender activist Sophia Brooks and damaging her mobile phone. Court documents state alleged abusive social media posts occurred between 11 and 27 October and that the phone was damaged on the day of the Battle of Ideas conference. Linehan denies the allegations. The writer has been a vocal critic of the trans rights movement and posed with a sign expressing anti-trans and women’s sports messages before the hearing. He was arrested at Heathrow on suspicion of inciting violence for X posts, prompting political and policing comments.
Read at www.independent.co.uk
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