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Daily Mirror
08-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Britain's Got Talent finalist speaks out after being cleared of rape
Former Britain's Got Talent finalist Andrew Johnston admits he's now hoping to rebuild his life after Southwark Crown Court cleared him of raping two women Britain's Got Talent finalist Andrew Johnston says he "lost everything" after being accused of rape. He was cleared of both accusations on Thursday. The former singer, who appeared on the programme and made it to the final in 2008, was accused of raping and sexually assaulting one woman and raping a second. Andrew, 30, had continued to deny the allegations against him. Prosecutors alleged that he twice took a condom off during sex and continued with the intercourse. One of the women also claims he groped her bottom and kissed her when she saw him at a club. Following the verdict on Thursday, Andrew told Southwark Crown Court that after five years, he is hoping to get his life back on track. He said: "I'm just glad it's over – it's been super stressful." He went on to say: "It's been five years of this, people doubting me. And I've not been able to say anything for five years. "So I've only just been able to get my say and, thankfully, the right decision has been made. But I just want to go home now and see my dog." When asked what he thought was next for him, Johnston responded: "Get my life back. Slowly be rebuilding my life because I've lost everything over this last five years." Johnston, who wore a grey suit, held his head in his hands as the verdict was read out. He added to the court that he had "never sung a note" since the allegations emerged, while saying that the women had told "a pack of lies." He described his lovemaking as "fast, energetic, maybe a bit passionate" but added that he was never aggressive, always used a condom and that the sex was consensual. The jury of nine women and three men cleared him of all the charges. The alleged offences happened a number of years after Johnston shot to fame as a choirboy on the ITV show, Maryam Syed KC, prosecuting, told the jury previously. Ms Syed said Johnston, of Carlisle, Cumbria, had been "engaging in consensual sexual activity" with one of the women, but he allegedly removed his condom, and she "repeatedly told Mr Johnston to stop" – but he did not. The other woman told police she engaged in consensual sex with the singer and asked him to use a condom. The woman said she started to feel his hands around her neck and 'no matter how many times she removed them', he kept putting his hands back around her throat, Ms Syed said. He then stopped and removed the condom, then carried on with the sex, it was alleged. The singer, who was born in Dumfries, Scotland, but moved when he was about eight months old, released an album that went to number four in the UK charts and appeared on tour with other Britain's Got Talent finalists. His mother entered him on BGT where he impressed the judges including Simon Cowell with his version of Pie Jesu and Eric Clapton's Tears in Heaven. He came third and went on to sign a contract with Cowell, released an album that went to number four in the UK charts and appeared in a UK Tour with other finalists. The early stardom stopped as his voice changed, prompting him to make a shift and sing in a lower range. He told the court: "It went on for a couple of years until my voice started to change. It became a bit difficult to sing the songs I was singing in the show."
Telegraph
30-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Ex-Britain's Got Talent finalist denies double rape
A former Britain's Got Talent finalist has denied two counts of rape. Andrew Johnston, 30, said he had 'fast, energetic, maybe a bit passionate' sex with two women that was consensual and not aggressive. The former choirboy shot to fame on the ITV talent show in 2008, coming third and signing a record deal with Simon Cowell. He was charged with raping and sexually assaulting one woman and raping another. Mr Johnston, of Carlisle, Cumbria, fought back tears as he denied the allegations at Southwark Crown Court on Wednesday. Now a full-time roofer, Mr Johnston said he had 'never sung a note' since the allegations against him. 'I had lost everything – my career, my girlfriend over this period of time,' he said. 'I just got into a bad state really quickly. I have never sung a note since. I can't bring myself to.' The first alleged victim accused Mr Johnston in a police interview of ignoring repeated requests to stop, holding one of his hands on her throat and using the other to pin down her arms. She alleged that he only stopped when she 'slammed on his chest with both hands'. Giving evidence, Mr Johnston said 'a condom was always used' and he 'never put my hands anywhere near her neck' during the 'energetic, fast' intercourse. He also denied removing the condom when he had sex with the other woman or holding her around the throat. Mr Johnston's defence is that the women's allegations are a 'pack of lies', the jury was told. Prosecutor Maryam Syed KC told Mr Johnston he had taken a 'calculated risk' and 'deliberately raped' both women, with the two alleged incidents bearing a 'pattern'. 'I did not rape those two girls,' he replied. One of the alleged victims also claims Mr Johnston sexually assaulted her by groping her bottom and kissing her at a nightclub. Giving evidence in court, Mr Johnston was asked by defence counsel Rupert Kent if he 'at any time' reasonably believed that she was not consenting. He replied: 'It was always consenting.' Mr Johnston was also asked if he touched her, answering: 'No, never.' Mr Kent asked: 'Are you guilty of these three charges?' Mr Johnston replied: 'I am not at all.' He added: 'It is not me. It is not the way I was brought up. It is not something I would do and it does not sound like me at all.' 'I was really suffering with depression' Mr Johnston told the court he had suffered from depression and ended a relationship since the allegations were made. 'I was really suffering with depression. It was quite hard, so we called quits on it,' he said. 'It started instantly when I heard about these allegations, but it just got gradually worse as time went on and spiralled until I went on medication for it.' His mother entered him on Britain's Got Talent where he impressed the judges, including Mr Cowell, with his version of Pie Jesu and Eric Clapton's Tears in Heaven. He came third and went on to sign a contract with Mr Cowell, released an album that went to number four in the UK charts and appeared in a UK Tour with other finalists. The early stardom stopped as his voice changed prompting him to make a shift and sing in a lower range. He told the court: 'It went on for a couple of years until my voice started to change. It became a bit difficult to sing the songs I was singing in the show.'
Daily Mirror
30-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
BGT finalist says his sex is 'fast, energetic, maybe a bit passionate' as he denies rape
A former Britain's Got Talent finalist has described his sex as "fast, energetic, maybe a pit passionate" while in court as he is accused of raping two women. Andrew Johnston, 30, cried at London's Southwark Crown Court as he denied two counts of rape and one count of sexual assault. He told the jury he was never aggressive, always used a condom and the sex was consensual. Johnston, who shot to fame as a choirboy when he came third in the ITV talent show in 2008, is charged with raping and sexually assaulting one woman and raping another woman. He said he had been messaging and dating a lot around the time of the alleged offences. Johnston, who landed a record deal with Simon Cowell, told the jury he has suffered from depression. He added that his mental health is "terrible" and he has broken up with a girlfriend. While in court on Wednesday, he said: "I was in a bad place. I was just in a really bad place." Asked about the impact on his life, he added: "I had lost everything my career, my girlfriend over this period of time. I just got into a bad state really quickly. I have never sung a note since. I can't bring myself to." Stopping to drop his head and in a shaky voice, he added: "I just can't bring myself to." Johnston's alleged victims have claimed he slipped a condom off during sex and continued having intercourse. One of them also alleges he groped her bum and kissed her when she saw him at a club. Johnston, who is now a full-time roofer, told the court the charges "are on my mind every single day". Defence counsel Rupert Kent asked: "Are you guilty of these three charges?" Johnston replied: "I am not at all." In relation to the first rape allegation, Mr Kent asked Johnston if he "at any time" reasonably believed that she was not consenting. Johnston replied: "It was always consenting." He was also asked if he touched her, and Johnston answered "no never". Speaking earlier, Johnston said: "I have waited to have my say on this. I have waited to give evidence but it is not easy." He described the situation as "awful", adding: "It is not me. It is not the way I was brought up. It is not something I would do and it does not sound like me at all." Johnston came third on his series of Britain's Got Talent and went on to sign a record deal with Simon. His mother had entered him to the talent show where he performed his version of Pie Jesu and Eric Clapton's Tears in Heaven. He released an album that went to number four in the charts. Johnston's early fame stopped when his voice changed as he adapted his signing. He told the court: "It went on for a couple of years until my voice started to change. It became a bit difficult to sing the songs I was singing in the show."
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Ex-Britain's Got Talent finalist denies double rape
A former Britain's Got Talent finalist has denied two counts of rape. Andrew Johnston, 30, said he had 'fast, energetic, maybe a bit passionate' sex with two women that was consensual and not aggressive. The former choirboy shot to fame on the ITV talent show in 2008, coming third and signing a record deal with Simon Cowell. He was charged with raping and sexually assaulting one woman and raping another. Johnston, of Carlisle, Cumbria, fought back tears as he denied the allegations at Southwark Crown Court on Wednesday. Now a full-time roofer, Johnston said he had 'never sung a note' since the allegations against him. 'I had lost everything – my career, my girlfriend over this period of time,' he said. 'I just got into a bad state really quickly. I have never sung a note since. I can't bring myself to.' Johnston's two alleged victims claim he removed a condom while having sex with them, while one also alleges he sexually assaulted her by groping her bottom and kissing her at a nightclub. Giving evidence in court, Johnston was asked by defence counsel Rupert Kent if he 'at any time' reasonably believed that she was not consenting. He replied: 'It was always consenting.' Johnston was also asked if he touched her, answering: 'No, never.' Mr Kent asked: 'Are you guilty of these three charges?' Johnston replied: 'I am not at all.' He added: 'It is not me. It is not the way I was brought up. It is not something I would do and it does not sound like me at all.' Johnston told the court he had suffered from depression and ended a relationship since the allegations were made. 'I was really suffering with depression. It was quite hard, so we called quits on it,' he said. 'It started instantly when I heard about these allegations, but it just got gradually worse as time went on and spiralled until I went on medication for it.' His mother entered him on Britain's Got Talent where he impressed the judges, including Cowell, with his version of Pie Jesu and Eric Clapton's Tears in Heaven. He came third and went on to sign a contract with Cowell, released an album that went to number four in the UK charts and appeared in a UK Tour with other finalists. The early stardom stopped as his voice changed prompting him to make a shift and sing in a lower range. He told the court: 'It went on for a couple of years until my voice started to change. It became a bit difficult to sing the songs I was singing in the show.' Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Daily Mirror
30-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Britain's Got Talent finalist cries in court as he denies raping two women
A former Britain's Got Talent finalist who landed a record deal with Simon Cowell paused to fight back tears as he told a court he never raped two women. On Wednesday Andrew Johnston, 30, described his lovemaking as "fast, energetic, maybe a bit passionate" but told the jury at London's Southwark Crown Court he was never aggressive, always used a condom and the sex was consensual. Johnston, who shot to fame as a choirboy when he came third in the show in 2008, is charged with raping and sexually assaulting one woman and raping another woman. Johnson said he had been messaging and dating a lot around the time of the alleged offences. Johnston, of Carlisle, Cumbria, denies two counts of rape and one count of sexual assault. Johnston told the jury he has suffered from depression, his mental health is "terrible" and he has broken up with a girlfriend. Recalling this period Johnston paused and put his head down before saying: "I was in a bad place. I was just in a really bad place." Asked about the impact on his life, he added: "I had lost everything my career, my girlfriend over this period of time. I just got into a bad state really quickly. I have never sung a note since. I can't bring myself to." Stopping to drop his head and in a shaky voice, he added: "I just can't bring myself to." His alleged victims claim he slipped the condom off during sex and continued having intercourse, while one of them also also alleges he groped her bum and kissed her when she saw him at a club. In relation to the first rape allegation, defence counsel Rupert Kent asked Johnston if he "at any time" reasonably believed that she was not consenting. Johnston replied: "It was always consenting." He was also asked if he touched her, and Johnston answered "no never". Johnston, who is now a full-time roofer, told the court that these charges "are on my mind every single day". Mr Kent asked: "Are you guilty of these three charges?" Johnston replied: "I am not at all." Earlier he had said: "I have waited to have my say on this. I have waited to give evidence but it is not easy." He described the situation as "awful", adding: "It is not me. It is not the way I was brought up. It is not something I would do and it does not sound like me at all." Johnston was born in Dumfries, Scotland, but moved when he was about eight-months-old. He said he has been suffering from depression since the allegations were made against him which led to the break-up of a relationship. "I was really suffering with depression. It was quite hard so we called quits on it," he said. "It started instantly when I heard about these allegations but it just got gradually worse as time went on and spiralled until I went on medication for it." His mother entered him on BGT where he impressed the judges including Cowell with his version of Pie Jesu and Eric Clapton's Tears in Heaven. He came third and went on to sign a contract with Cowell, released an album that went to number four in the UK charts and appeared in a UK Tour with other finalists. The early stardom stopped as his voice changed prompting him to make a shift and sing in a lower range. He told the court: "It went on for a couple of years until my voice started to change. It became a bit difficult to sing the songs I was singing in the show."
