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Rolf Harris trial: Entertainer begins giving evidence Rolf Harris trial: Entertainer begins giving evidence
(35 minutes later)
TV entertainer and artist Rolf Harris has started giving evidence for the first time at his trial for alleged indecent assaults at London's Southwark Crown Court. TV entertainer and artist Rolf Harris has started giving evidence at London's Southwark Crown Court in his trial for alleged indecent assaults.
The jury has heard claims Mr Harris, from Bray, Berkshire, was a "Jekyll and Hyde" character whose fame allowed him to target under-age girls in the past. The jury has heard prosecution claims Mr Harris, from Bray, Berkshire, was a "Jekyll and Hyde" character whose fame allowed him to target under-age girls.
He denies 12 counts of indecent assault on girls aged seven or eight to 19.He denies 12 counts of indecent assault on girls aged seven or eight to 19.
The 84-year-old arrived with his wife, Alwen Hughes, and his daughter, Bindi. The 84-year-old began by providing details of his childhood in Australia.
He told the court he had been a talented swimmer as a teenager and went to university but "didn't really understand it" and was asked to leave.
Mr Harris said he then started teaching but became unwell after picking up an infection while swimming in a river and became "totally paralysed".
He said it was while he was recovering from the illness in hospital that he decided to pursue a career in painting and moved to London to study in March 1952, when he was 22.
The entertainer said he got his break in television in 1953, despite an "appalling" audition.
Mr Harris was given a five minute slot on a programme called Jigsaw, the jury was told, before he was "signed up" by the BBC in 1954.
Earlier in the trial, prosecutor Sasha Wass QC told the jury Mr Harris was "an immensely talented man" but used his reputation to carry out "brazen" sexual assaults, often when other people were present or nearby.
The incidents are alleged to have taken place between 1968 and 1986.The incidents are alleged to have taken place between 1968 and 1986.
Prosecutor Sasha Wass QC told the jury Mr Harris was "an immensely talented man" but used his reputation to carry out "brazen" sexual assaults, often when other people were present or nearby.