Actor turned aspiring politician Laurence Fox is waiting to hear the outcome of his appeal against a defamation judgement that ordered him to pay £90,000 each to two men he labeled pedophiles in an online exchange.
Fox lost a High Court battle back in January 2024 over comments he’d made about Simon Blake, a former trustee of the LGBTIQA+ focused charity Stonewall, and Colin Seymour, who is better known as drag artist Crystal.
The two men had taken Fox to court over comments he’s made on the social media platform X. Dame Rowena Collins Rice, the Honourable Mrs Justice Collins Rice, ruled that Fox had defamed both men.
The case was sparked by an online discussion about British supermarket chain Sainsburys offering a safe space for Black employees during Black History Month. Fox, the founder of the right wing Reclaim Party took to social media to call for a boycott of the supermarket.
This prompted Collins, Seymour and former Coronation Street actor Nicola Thorp to respond with an accusation that Fox was a racist. He then described the two men as pedophiles.
They sued him for defamation, and he counter sued over the comments describing him as being racist. He said since they’d made their comment his offers of work had significantly reduced.
Fox’s claim was dismissed, but the claim against him was upheld. this week he returned to court with his barrister arguing that there had been an error in the way the trial judge approached the evidence, questioning if the two men genuinely experienced any damage to their reputations.
Appearing for Fox, Patrick Green KC said the decision on damages did not consider the actual words Fox used “and the likelihood that many or the vast majority of readers would have not have taken them seriously, particularly in their context”.
The barrister also argued that the trial judge had failed to take into account an apology made by Fox, and did not fully consider alleged misconduct by Blake and Seymour who he suggested exaggerated the harm and distress caused.
Adrienne Page KC represents Thorp, Seymour, and Blake, who are opposing the appeal. She said in written submissions to the court that the appeal “was lacking in merit”.
“‘They conveyed factual imputations of the most serious defamatory character.” Page said, noting that no genuine apology had ever been given by Fox. She also argued that the original trial had centered around discussion about how people may have interpreted Fox’s comments, and the trial judge had rightfully rejected the argument that people would have understood he was not making an accusation.
Lord Justice Dingemans, Lady Justice Elisabeth Laing and Lord Justice Warby are hearing the appeal and are expected to hand down their decision at a later date.
Fox is best known for his long running role in the British TV series Lewis. He played the role of Detective James Hathaway from 2006 until 2015, but he’s subsequently launched a career as a right-wing political commentator and become regular candidate at elections.
Laurence Fox was previously married to singer and actor Billie Piper. In 2016 Laurence Fox launched a music career, but he later turned to politics launching the right-wing Reclaim party.
He is part of the Fox acting dynasty, his father James Fox has enjoyed a long career, as has his uncle Edward Fox. His cousin Emilia Fox stars in the television series Silent Witness, while her younger brother Freddie Fox has appeared in many series including Cucumber, Banana, Slow Horses, Doctor Who and The Great.
