Police say they have received a ‘report of a sex offence’ after Noel Clarke denied claims

The Metropolitan Police said today they have received a third party report of a sexual offence after actor and director Noel Clarke was accused of bullying and groping by 20 women.

The force said: ‘On Wednesday 21 April police received a third party report relating to allegations of sexual offences committed by a male over a period of time. Officers are currently assessing the information.

‘We would urge anyone who believes they have been subjected to a sexual offence to report this to police so the information can be assessed and investigated accordingly. There are specially trained officers ready to provide advice and support.’

A third party report is when claims are made to an organisation separate from the police. This type of report is anonymous and means the claims cannot be probed by officers but can be used as intelligence. 

The police said there was no investigation underway at this time.  

Twenty women who knew Clarke in a professional capacity have accused the Kidulthood and Doctor Who actor of sexual harassment and bullying in a series of shocking claims published by The Guardian on Thursday.

Clarke, 45, yesterday apologised ‘deeply’ for his actions and said he will be seeking professional help, but has ‘vehemently’ denied sexual misconduct or criminal behaviour.  

The actor and producer, who is married to make-up artist Iris Da Silva, said it has become clear to him that ‘some of my actions have affected people in ways I did not intend or realise’, and offered an apology to those affected. 

The father-of-three was suspended from Bafta following the allegations, while Sky took the decision to ‘halt’ filming of the latest series of his east London crime drama Bulletproof. 

Following the claims, which saw Clarke suspended from Bafta, the actor said in a statement: ‘I vehemently deny any sexual misconduct or criminal wrongdoing.

‘Recent reports however have made it clear to me that some of my actions have affected people in ways I did not intend or realise. To those individuals, I am deeply sorry. I will be seeking professional help to educate myself and change for the better.’  

His comments came amid reports that Bafta spent two weeks deciding how best to respond to allegations against Clarke prior to presenting him with an award. 

The film academy was made aware of the allegations of sexual harassment, bullying and verbal abuse shortly after it announced its intention to honour the director with an award for outstanding British contribution to cinema, according to The Guardian.

It added that senior figures within the film academy were worried about the potential reputational damage to the organisation over its handling of the claims against Clarke. 

Bafta chair Krishnendu Majumdar was reportedly aware there could be as many as 12 women making allegations against Clarke on the eve of the awards ceremony.

He sought to speak to anyone with first-hand experience of Clarke’s alleged misconduct and told an industry figure he was ‘trying to do something about’ the situation as it could ‘destroy’ Bafta ‘in the court of public opinion’, the newspaper said.

Majumdar is said to have described the allegations as a ‘desperately difficult situation for us’ as Bafta ‘cannot act as judge and jury’.

He also hosted a Zoom call with figures including Bafta chief executive Amanda Berry to discuss how to respond to the allegations, The Guardian said.     

Bafta has said it will not comment on the latest claims in The Guardian.

However, the academy previously said it was not aware of the allegations relating to Clarke before announcing he would be given the award and it was in the following days they received anonymous emails about the allegations from second or third-hand sources. 

In a letter to members published on the Bafta website, Majumdar and chief executive Amanda Berry said: ‘You may have seen the story in today’s Guardian regarding BAFTA member and recent Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema (OBCC) award recipient Noel Clarke.

‘We are grateful that The Guardian was able to provide a platform where the victims were able to identify themselves, and to come forward and tell their stories.

‘As soon as The Guardian published firsthand accounts yesterday we immediately suspended the award and Noel Clarke’s membership of BAFTA until further notice.

‘We wanted to inform you of the background to this situation to give you the full picture.

‘To be very clear, we did not know about any allegations relating to Noel Clarke prior to the announcement of the OBCC award on 29 March.

‘We want to reassure you that we have treated this matter with the utmost seriousness, care and proper process at every stage. 

‘The BAFTA Board of Trustees has remained right across this matter, has met a number of times and are fully supportive of all actions taken.

‘The allegations against Mr Clarke are extremely serious and the behaviour they allege are contrary to BAFTA’s values and everything it stands for. 

‘But no matter how abhorrent these allegations are, they cannot be dealt with without due process. BAFTA is an arts charity that is not in a position to properly investigate such matters.  

‘In the days following the announcement, BAFTA received anonymous emails of allegations in relation to Noel Clarke. These were either anonymous or second or thirdhand accounts via intermediaries. No firsthand allegations were sent to us. No names, times, dates, productions or other details were ever provided.

‘Had the victims gone on record as they have with The Guardian, the award would have been suspended immediately. Noel Clarke’s counsel received a legal notice to this effect. It was always very clear what our intentions would be.

‘We asked for individuals to come forward with their accounts and identify themselves, as they have done with The Guardian, but due to the anonymous claims and the lack of firsthand specificity, we did not have sufficient grounds to take action.’

Bafta added it acted ‘as quickly and supportively as we could, even though we had only received the most generic of claims and no actual firsthand information to investigate allegations which were potentially of a criminal nature.’

They also claimed they would not have presented the award to Clarke had they been provided with this testimony.

Meanwhile, Clarke’s mother Gemma Clarke said she was proud of her son becoming an actor and only gave him this piece of advice when he was growing up: ‘Just don’t thieve or go to jail.’ 

She told MailOnline: ‘I am proud of him and I’m still proud of him but I don’t know what’s going on. 

‘I haven’t managed to speak to him because his phone is switched off but I have spoken to his wife and kids. I’m not telling you how she is but the kids were in school today. He’s not at home. I don’t know where he is.

‘I can’t get through to him. I’m confused and upset but I can’t comment until I’ve spoken to him. I’ve tried to ring him but his phone is switched off.’

Mrs Clarke said Noel had wanted to be an actor since he was a child and filmed parts of Kidulthood in his mother’s home in a block of council flats and the grounds outside, which lie in the shadow of Grenfell Tower.

Born in Trinidad, she moved to Britain in 1969 and became a paediatric nurse in 1973. Noel was born in Hammersmith Hospital.

‘I wasn’t upset that he didn’t go into the medical profession,’ she said. ‘He always wanted to be an actor. I was very proud of him.’ She said his acting career began in 2003 with a role in Auf Weidershen Pet.