This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-29664313
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
Version 1 | Version 2 |
---|---|
Simon Warr sex abuse trial: Suffolk teacher denies indecency in showers | Simon Warr sex abuse trial: Suffolk teacher denies indecency in showers |
(about 7 hours later) | |
A former teacher and BBC contributor accused of sexually abusing pupils has told a court he did not linger around school showers. | A former teacher and BBC contributor accused of sexually abusing pupils has told a court he did not linger around school showers. |
Simon Warr, 61, denies seven charges of gross indecency or indecent assault. | Simon Warr, 61, denies seven charges of gross indecency or indecent assault. |
The offences are alleged to have occurred at two boarding schools in Suffolk in the 1980s and 1990s. | The offences are alleged to have occurred at two boarding schools in Suffolk in the 1980s and 1990s. |
Mr Warr also said he had never caned anyone - apart from television presenter Adrian Chiles, on BBC programme The One Show, as "a joke". | Mr Warr also said he had never caned anyone - apart from television presenter Adrian Chiles, on BBC programme The One Show, as "a joke". |
'Trousers down' | 'Trousers down' |
The jury in the trial at Ipswich Crown Court heard evidence from two former pupils of the fee-paying St George's School in Great Finborough, near Stowmarket, where five offences are alleged to have taken place in 1983-84. | The jury in the trial at Ipswich Crown Court heard evidence from two former pupils of the fee-paying St George's School in Great Finborough, near Stowmarket, where five offences are alleged to have taken place in 1983-84. |
Both men, who were under 12 years old at the time, claimed Mr Warr, from Hounslow in west London, had watched boys in the showers after PE. | Both men, who were under 12 years old at the time, claimed Mr Warr, from Hounslow in west London, had watched boys in the showers after PE. |
Giving his evidence, one alleged Mr Warr had touched his genitals, claiming he needed to check they were clean. | Giving his evidence, one alleged Mr Warr had touched his genitals, claiming he needed to check they were clean. |
Mr Warr denied those accusations and told the jury he had "rarely ventured into shower blocks". | Mr Warr denied those accusations and told the jury he had "rarely ventured into shower blocks". |
Asked by his barrister, Matthew Gowen, if he had ever "lingered around the showers", Mr Warr replied "no". | Asked by his barrister, Matthew Gowen, if he had ever "lingered around the showers", Mr Warr replied "no". |
Prosecutor Andrew Thompson told the court Mr Warr was said to be present on one occasion when the school's then headmaster, Derek Slade, made a group of pupils strip off their underwear before beating them for misbehaving. | Prosecutor Andrew Thompson told the court Mr Warr was said to be present on one occasion when the school's then headmaster, Derek Slade, made a group of pupils strip off their underwear before beating them for misbehaving. |
Slade was imprisoned in 2010 for 32 sexual and physical offences against pupils during Mr Warr's time at the school. | Slade was imprisoned in 2010 for 32 sexual and physical offences against pupils during Mr Warr's time at the school. |
Mr Warr told the court he "couldn't remember" if he had been in Slade's office at the time. | Mr Warr told the court he "couldn't remember" if he had been in Slade's office at the time. |
"I would have reported him if he'd asked them to take their trousers down," he told the jury. | "I would have reported him if he'd asked them to take their trousers down," he told the jury. |
Rejecting allegations he had been a "tyrant" who rapped pupils' knuckles, Mr Warr said he had "never administered corporal punishment in 35 years of teaching". | Rejecting allegations he had been a "tyrant" who rapped pupils' knuckles, Mr Warr said he had "never administered corporal punishment in 35 years of teaching". |
"I never caned anyone," he said, "except [BBC television presenter] Adrian Chiles on The One Show, and that was a joke." | "I never caned anyone," he said, "except [BBC television presenter] Adrian Chiles on The One Show, and that was a joke." |
Jokey nickname | |
Two of the seven charges Mr Warr faces relate to offences alleged to have taken place at the Royal Hospital School, Holbrook in 1994. | Two of the seven charges Mr Warr faces relate to offences alleged to have taken place at the Royal Hospital School, Holbrook in 1994. |
He told the jury his actions - which he said included trying to swipe a boy's towel away and making to pinch his bottom - were "a joke", and had no sexual element to them. | He told the jury his actions - which he said included trying to swipe a boy's towel away and making to pinch his bottom - were "a joke", and had no sexual element to them. |
He said he enjoyed a very good relationship with pupils in his role as house master, and many of them would "jokingly" refer to him by a nickname, "Pecker". | He said he enjoyed a very good relationship with pupils in his role as house master, and many of them would "jokingly" refer to him by a nickname, "Pecker". |
Mr Warr was a regular contributor to BBC Radio Suffolk and BBC Radio 2's Jeremy Vine show. | Mr Warr was a regular contributor to BBC Radio Suffolk and BBC Radio 2's Jeremy Vine show. |
He also featured in Channel 4's reality show That'll Teach 'Em and was a contestant on Mastermind. | He also featured in Channel 4's reality show That'll Teach 'Em and was a contestant on Mastermind. |
The trial continues. | The trial continues. |