Joining hands, it’s Cliff and the Survivors’ Club
Singer meets DJ and MP who also faced false abuse accusations
HANDS joined in a display of solidarity, these are the three high-profile members of a group dubbed the ‘Survivors’ Club’.
Sir Cliff Richard, MP Nigel Evans and DJ Paul Gambaccini were pictured together yesterday after meeting up to talk about their experience of the ‘ hell’ of being falsely accused of sexual offences.
The photo, posted online by Mr Evans, was taken at the Surrey home of a friend of Sir Cliff and shows how a bond has formed between the three public figures whose reputations were shredded before they were cleared of all allegations.
Mr Gambaccini has supported Sir Cliff, 75, through what he described as ‘a dark age of British law enforcement’ as the singer spent nearly two years fighting to clear his name of false allegations that he sexually assaulted a number of boys. The accusations were dismissed by prosecutors last month.
The original police raid on one of Sir Cliff’s homes was filmed live by the BBC, which had been tipped off by the South Yorkshire force.
While detectives were shown raiding his flat in Sunningdale, Berkshire, in
‘Shared experience of going through hell’
August 2014 the singer was identified as an alleged sex abuser.
On holiday in Portugal, Sir Cliff discovered he was a suspect only when he saw the raid on TV.
Radio presenter Mr Gambaccini, 67, was arrested in November 2013 over allegations of historical sex offences. He spent a year on police bail before being cleared without charge.
Mr Evans, a former deputy speaker of the Commons, was also cleared of a string of sex abuse charges, including one of rape, after a trial at Preston Crown Court in 2014.
Now Sir Cliff wants to join the 58-yearold MP for Ribble Valley and his DJ friend in a campaign to change the law so those accused of such crimes are not named until they are charged.
Mr Evans said last night: ‘We all want a change in the law. We met to share our experiences of going through hell.
‘We discussed the fact that there are so many victims who are created by false accusations.
‘We are all scarred by the experiences we have been through and we all came through it.
‘We are talking to other people who have been through similar trauma to try and put pressure on the government.’ He added: ‘For Cliff it was clearly worse than anyone else. The way the police and the BBC colluded with each other was absolutely shameful.
‘We need a change in the law so the accused are not named until they are charged. We just want them to have the same protection as victims.
‘It’s not just famous people, it’s also ordinary people who have their name published in the local paper about them being investigated. That has an enormous impact.’
Their campaign has received widespread support online, with hundreds commenting or ‘liking’ the picture after it was posted on Facebook yesterday afternoon.
One supporter, Simon Harley, described the three men as the ‘Survivors’ Club’.
Another, Richard Alvin, wrote: ‘You all have such an odd and unnecessary bond. All three of you faced accusations which you should never have faced but you all do so with dignity and respect.
‘I hope that, if you wish to, you get the law changed so others no longer have to face the staining on your character that no one who is innocent should ever face.’
Sir Cliff has spoken in the Mail of his determination to change the law after being smeared by nine men, including a serial rapist and a blackmailer, whose accusations were dismissed by prosecutors.
He said: ‘If we can change a little factor like making sure people like me, Paul [Gambaccini], Jimmy Tarbuck [the entertainer also cleared of sex abuse allegations] and everyone else don’t get named unless charged, that would make all that I’ve been through almost worthwhile… almost, not completely.’