Boy who says Phillip Schofield's brother Timothy engaged in sexual activity with him 'not driven by hate or lies', court hears

A teenage boy who has accused the brother of This Morning's star presenter Phillip Schofield of sexual abuse was "not motivated by hate and lies" and gave a truthful account of what happened to him, a court has heard.

Timothy Schofield, 54, is on trial at Exeter Crown Court charged with 11 sexual offences involving a child which are said to have occurred between October 2016 and October 2019, including two of sexual activity with a child.

Schofield confided in his TV star brother Phillip about some of the alleged offending in 2021, and wept as he told the court about their phone call.

But he has claimed the boy was over 16 when they watched pornography together and masturbated sitting apart, and has denied performing sexual acts on the teenager.

A civilian IT worker for Avon and Somerset Police, Schofield told the jury he had been gay his "entire life" but had kept it "completely secret and hidden from everybody".

Teenager 'restrained' in allegations

On Friday, the court heard closing speeches from Schofield's lawyer and the prosecution.

Robin Shellard, prosecuting, told the jury that the evidence from the teenager was that the abuse started when he was 13, and suggested that he was "restrained" in his account.

"If the boy was making it up, if he was a person motivated by hate and spite, he could have made it much worse.

"The problem for Mr Schofield is how restrained the boy is in his allegations. Is that person motivated by hate and spite or is he saying things about what happened?

"We say the evidence shows the boy is not motivated by hate and lies. This was a teenager who was criminally abused when he was 13, 14 and 15, and it is something that only came to an end when he was sure enough to deal with it."

'This is a court of law, not morals'

Peter Binder, defending, said that Schofield would be "guilty of the gravest of crimes" in the court of public morals, but told the jury: "Matters of themselves do not make him guilty of these offences.

"This is a court of law and not a court of public morals, and its entirely proper, due to the oaths and affirmations you have taken, to put aside all your feelings of antipathy and revulsion you feel towards the defendant and try this case and these charges on the evidence.

"You must be utterly dispassionate. This case boils down one person's word - that of the boy - against the other - that of the defendant."

Phillip Schofield has not hosted ITV's This Morning this week as he was taking "pre-planned leave", the studio said.

Timothy Schofield, of Bath, denies three counts of causing a child to watch sexual activity, three of engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child, three of causing a child to engage in sexual activity and two of sexual activity with a child.

Mrs Justice Cutts told the jury they will retire to consider their verdicts on Monday.