Leslie agrees £550,000 deal with 'Daily Express'
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.John Leslie has agreed an exclusive deal with the Daily Express worth a reported £550,000 to put his side of the story about the allegations of sexual assault which have dogged him for eight months.
The newspaper, owned by Richard Desmond, triumphed in a fierce bidding war which will allow the story to be shared with the Daily Star, the Express's sister title.
Bids for an exclusive deal have been made in the past few days after it emerged that the Crown Prosecution Service is about to drop the case against Leslie due to lack of evidence.
The television presenter has refused to comment since the allegations were made. But if he is cleared he may take legal action against Channel 5 after Matthew Wright publicly linked him during his chat show last October with allegations made in Ulrika Jonsson's autobiography, Honest. Jonsson claimed she had been date-raped by another TV presenter in the 1980s, although she failed to name her alleged assailant.
As speculation mounted over the man's identity, Wright named Leslie on his show, The Wright Stuff, opening the way for other media organisations to name him.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments