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Dave Lee Travis to return to witness box for fourth day Dave Lee Travis tells court: 'I'm not exactly Sherlock Holmes'
(about 3 hours later)
Former Radio One disc jockey Dave Lee Travis will return to the witness box for a fourth day of evidence today as he fights sex offence allegations. Former Radio 1 disc jockey Dave Lee Travis told his trialthat he is "not exactly Sherlock Holmes" as he was accused ofchanging his version of events surrounding sex offence claims.
The former Top Of The Pops presenter denies indecently assaulting 10 women and sexually assaulting another during his 40-year career. The veteran DJ told jurors he was telling them the truth, and if what he said in court differed from what he told police, it was due to the "stress and strain" of being questioned by officers.
The veteran BBC DJ yesterday told jurors it was "absolutely 100 per cent wrong" that he thought it acceptable to grab women's breasts and bottoms during his 1970s and 1980s heyday. The former BBC presenter, known as DLT, has repeatedly denied indecently assaulting 10 women and sexually assaulting another in incidents dating back to 1976 and the height of his fame.
The former radio star said comments he made after the allegations came to light that things were different back then had been taken out of context and were not in reference to the women's claims. During heated cross-examination by prosecutor Miranda Moore QC at London's Southwark Crown Court, Travis, now 68, was questioned about claims that he groped a female colleague while working at Chiltern Radio in the early 2000s.
But he told jurors at London's Southwark Crown Court: "If patting somebody's bottom was a crime in the 1970s then half the country would be in jail by then." Asked why he told police that he did not remember any complaints being made against him, but now said he did accept that his boss had told him that a woman had accused him of touching her leg. Travis told jurors: "I'm clever enough to be a DJ and do my own stuff on the radio or on TV, but I'm not exactly Sherlock Holmes and I can't exactly work out the best way of telling a story.
Travis, 68, known as DLT, also told his trial that he had been groped by four women himself, adding that three of them were "very, very famous". "My best way of telling a story is to tell the truth. I'm telling you the truth now."
He said the women "stuck their hands down between my legs and squeezed me", but added that he saw each incident as a joke. Pressed on why his account had changed, Travis became angry as he told Ms Moore: "I have never been arrested in my life and so I considered that I was feeling a little bit shaky about that."
Asked about the attention he received from female fans, Travis admitted that he had on occasion fallen to "temptation" and cheated on his wife of 40 years. Travis denied he touched his colleague inappropriately, telling jurors it was normal for him to greet his colleagues with a "bear hug".
But he added: "I have never said, in my life, that I am a sex symbol. No, I am a big hairy, cuddly bear." "I was not aware that she had a problem with being touched," he said.
Ms Moore accused Travis of feeling the woman's breasts.
"That is completely false," Travis said. "It's such a short move from touching somebody's shoulder to maybe touching their breasts as well."
Questioned further, Travis said he might have accidentally touched her legs during an argument they had.
He said testily: "I didn't do anything to her. I may have touched her legs with my hands or with my knees but it's not something l 'did' to her, it was due to the close proximity of our faces."
Travis also became agitated as Ms Moore put it to him that his colleagues at the radio station avoided having to make eye contact with him.
"Nobody ever put their heads down when I walked in the newsroom - ever."
Travis, from Buckinghamshire, denies 13 indecent assaults and one sexual assault.Travis, from Buckinghamshire, denies 13 indecent assaults and one sexual assault.
Appearing under his birth name David Griffin, Travis faces charges relating to offences alleged to have occurred when he was working as a BBC DJ, as a broadcaster with Classic Gold radio, while appearing on Top Of The Pops and when starring in panto.Appearing under his birth name David Griffin, Travis faces charges relating to offences alleged to have occurred when he was working as a BBC DJ, as a broadcaster with Classic Gold radio, while appearing on Top Of The Pops and when starring in panto.
The trial was temporarily adjourned as Travis needed to take painkillers for his bad back.
Following the break, Travis was asked by Ms Moore about an incident where he was alleged to have put his hand up a teenage girl's skirt as they travelled in a car on the way back from a corporate event where he was the DJ.
Asked if he was there "to get the party started", Travis replied: "I think the party would be going even without me.
"I suppose I was supposed to be the extra bit on top of the cake."
"Were you a good DJ?" Ms Moore asked.
"Still am," Travis replied.
Asked if he was popular, Travis said: "Yes, I was at the time."
Denying the incident in the car ever happened, Travis said the woman had "made it up".
"She dreamt it," he added.
"I have no idea really why it's come about.
"But I can say without a doubt: it did not happen."
The trial continues.
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