Nick Nick nicked!
Jim Davidson is accused of a hate crime after he told Serbian woman a joke about novichok in top Tory club
IT SOUNDS like the set-up to one of his politically incorrect jokes: a Serbian woman, a Conservative MP and a controversial comedian walk into a bar…
But it resulted in a bitter bust-up that left comic Jim Davidson under investigation by a police hate- crime unit, accused of launching an ‘unprovoked verbal assault’ of sexist and racist insults at the Serbian sister-in-law of rebel Tory MP Andrew Bridgen.
The slanging match took place at London’s elite Carlton Club earlier this month, where the veteran stand-up was celebrating his 65th birthday.
He is accused of telling Ksenija Pavlovic that as a Serbian she was a ‘poodle’ of Russian president Vladimir Putin and complicit in the Salisbury nerveagent poisonings. But friends of the comedian deny this version of events, telling The Mail on Sunday that he was merely joking that he ‘felt like drinking novichok’ after talking to her.
Ms Pavlovic also told police that Mr Davidson – whose catchphrase was ‘nick, nick’ – had said that he was ‘turning gay’ as a result of their conversation.
The clash took place on December 12 at the exclusive club, which was founded in 1832 as the original home of the Conservative Party. It counts dozens of senior Tories as members.
Mr Davidson had invited Mr Bridgen to the event. But the MP – a serial Tory rebel who has openly called for Theresa May to resign – arrived late as it coincided with the failed vote of no confidence in the Prime Minister led by his colleagues on t he Eurosceptic wing of the party.
His second wife, opera singer Nevena Pavlovic, had gone to the club before him in the company of her sister Ksenija, who lives in America and is a White House correspondent for a news website.
Mr Davidson, whose career has been dogged by accusations of sexism and racism, says that he objected to the fact that the pair were uninvited guests.
Ksenija counters that they were entitled to be at the club through Mr Bridgen’s membership and that she was appalled to have been subjected to an ‘unprovoked verbal assault’ by Mr Davidson.
Last night, Ksenija said that she had gone to the police because of Mr Davidson’s ‘derogatory, hateful remarks on the basis of my gender, race and nationality, and then calling me responsible for novichok’.
She said: ‘Mr Davidson made a verbal attack on me without any reason. It was very upsetting.
‘It was not in line with British democratic values, and not something you would expect in the Carlton Club, which is meant to be a safe space.
‘He said to me, “You are a foreigner. You are a Serb, that means you are Putin and novichok.” He was calling me a terrorist, which is a serious allegation.
‘He also said, “I am turning gay as I am talking to you.” I was in shock. I was shaken by this man. That is why I went to the police.’
Ksenija said that when she told Mr Davidson that her husband was an American general, the comedian said ‘ Wow’ sarcastically, before adding: ‘America has more generals than we have tanks.’
The sisters were asked to leave the club shortly afterwards, and Ksenija reported the incident to police the following day.
She was then contacted by an officer from Scotland Yard’s hate-crime unit, who offered her ‘advice and support that may be able to assist you in your recovery and moving forward after the incident’.
She said yesterday that she is still in correspondence with the unit.
Last night, Tory-supporting Mr Davidson said: ‘I am aware of this lady’s complaint but it would not be right for me to comment on t he recollections of a woman who came as an uninvited guest to my 65th birthday party.
‘It would seem that the American and British humour sometimes clash.
‘I’ m sure her recollections of events will be more fun to read than mine. I hope she has had time to reflect, and has a good Christmas.’
A friend of the comedian added: ‘ It was late and drink had been taken. Jim did not call her a terrorist – he said that he felt like drinking novichok after talking to her.’
A friend of Mr Bridgen said: ‘He is keen to stay out of this.’
A Scotland Yard spokesman said: ‘At approximately 11pm on Thurs- day, December 13, police received a report of alleged racial abuse, which is said to have taken place on December 12 at an address on St James’s Street.’
The spokesman added that no action had been taken.
Former Generation Game and Big Break host Mr Davidson, who has been married five times, revels in making jokes about women, ethnic minorities, gay people and the disabled. His most notorious character is the West Indian Chalky White.
In March, novichok was used by Russian agents in an attempt to kill former Russian military intelligence officer Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in Salisbury.