- US finalizes rule to remove lead pipes within a decade
- Solanke hungry for second England cap after seven-year wait
- Gilded canopy restored at Vatican basilica
- Zverev scrapes through, Djokovic cruises to Shanghai Masters last 16
- Trump secretly sent Covid tests to Putin: Bob Woodward book
- Gauff answers critics: 'It's hard to win all the time'
- Neural networks, machine learning? Nobel-winning AI science explained
- China says raised 'serious concerns' with US over trade curbs
- Boeing delivers 27 MAX jets in September despite strike
- German 'Maddie' suspect could be free in 2025 after cleared of other sex crimes
- Italy seek Nations League consistency as Germany continue rebuild
- From boom to budgeting as reality bites for Saudi football
- Stock markets diverge as Hong Kong sinks, oil prices fall
- US trade gap narrowest in five months as imports slip
- Stay and 'you are going to die': Florida braces for next hurricane
- England 96-1 after Salman's century lifts Pakistan to 556
- Hollywood star Idris Elba champions African cinema in Ghana
- Djokovic rolls Cobolli to make Shanghai Masters last 16
- Milan's Hernandez receives two-game suspension after referee rant
- Geoffrey Hinton, soft-spoken godfather of AI
- Ex-Barcelona and Spain great Iniesta retires aged 40
- Duo wins Physics Nobel for 'foundational' AI breakthroughs
- German 'Maddie' suspect could be free in 2025 after cleared of separate sex crimes
- China slaps provisional tariffs on EU brandy imports
- Ex-skipper Skelton eyes Wallabies November return
- Spanish great Iniesta leaves indelible legacy after retirement
- Indian Kashmir elects first regional government in a decade
- Hong Kong stocks crash, oil prices retreat on fading China boost
- Man City accuse Premier League of 'misleading' claims after legal case
- Duo wins Physics Nobel for key breakthroughs in AI
- Agha defies England as Pakistan post 515-8 in first Test
- September second-warmest on record: EU climate monitor
- Pastor wanted by US for sex trafficking to run for Philippine senate
- Mozambican writer Mia Couto dreams future leaders set an 'example'
- German 'Maddie' suspect could be free soon after cleared of separate sex crimes
- China says to take anti-dumping measures against EU brandy imports
- German suspect in 'Maddie' case cleared in separate sex crimes trial
- Israel expands offensive against Hezbollah in south Lebanon
- China stocks rally fizzles on stimulus worries amid Asia retreat
- Bangladesh's Yunus says no elections before reforms
- England strike twice as Pakistan reach 397-6 at lunch in first Test
- China stocks rally peters out on stimulus worries amid Asia retreat
- Taiwan's Foxconn says building world's largest 'superchip' plant
- Kenya's deputy president faces impeachment vote
- N. Korean soldiers 'highly likely' killed in Ukraine: Seoul
- 'Appeals Centre' to referee EU social media disputes
- US Supreme Court to hear 'ghost guns' regulation case
- 'Small' oil leaks detected in Samoa after NZ navy shipwreck
- Nobel literature jury may go for non-Western writer
- At Istanbul church, blessed spring offers hope to Christians and Muslims
Kevin Spacey denies sexual assault charges in UK court
Hollywood actor Kevin Spacey on Thursday "strenuously" denied claims that he sexually assaulted three men, as the US star appeared in a London court to face charges.
Deputy Chief Magistrate Tan Ikram granted him unconditional bail until the next hearing, set for 9:30 am (0830 GMT) on July 14 at Southwark Crown Court in south London.
Spacey, 62, smiled but made no comment to a scrum of waiting reporters, photographers and television cameras as he arrived and left Westminster Magistrates Court in bright sunshine.
Inside the courtroom, the actor, wearing a light blue suit, stood in the dock to give his full name as Kevin Spacey Fowler, his date of birth and an address in London.
No formal pleas were given at the hearing, which lasted 28 minutes. But his lawyer Patrick Gibbs told the court: "Mr Spacey strenuously denies any and all criminality in this case.
"He needs to answer these charges if he is to proceed with his life."
The court was told that Spacey lives in the United States, where he has family and a nine-year-old dog.
The judge formally withdrew an arrest warrant issued two weeks ago after hearing that the two-time Oscar winner had arrived in London on Monday to appear in person.
"You have cooperated, I am told, with the authorities in New York and you have voluntarily attended these proceedings here today," the judge told him.
In England and Wales, first appearances at magistrates' courts are largely procedural, with prosecutors sketching out the charges and the judge setting bail.
Defendants are typically not obliged to enter a formal plea. More serious cases are sent to the crown court, where judges have greater sentencing powers in the event of a conviction.
- Charges -
The Crown Prosecution Service, which is responsible for bringing prosecutions in England and Wales, said last month it had authorised charges against Spacey.
The first two charges of sexual assault date from March 2005 in London and concern the same man, who is now in his 40s.
The third is alleged to have happened in London in August 2008 against a man who is now in his 30s.
Spacey has also been charged "with causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity without consent" against the same man.
The fourth sexual assault charge is alleged to have occurred in Gloucestershire, western England, in April 2013 against a third man, who is now in his 30s.
None of the alleged victims can be identified under English law.
Reporting restrictions prevent the media going into detail about the charges to avoid prejudicing a jury at any trial.
After the prosecutors' announcement last month, Spacey said he was "disappointed" with the decision.
But he said in a statement: "I will voluntarily appear in the UK as soon as can be arranged and defend myself against these charges, which I am confident will prove my innocence."
The Metropolitan Police in London announced on Monday he had been formally charged.
Spacey -- an Academy Award winner for "The Usual Suspects" and "American Beauty" -- was artistic director of The Old Vic theatre in London between 2004 and 2015.
Allegations against him emerged in the wake of the #MeToo movement that saw numerous claims of sexual assault and harassment in the movie industry.
That prompted an investigation by the Met and a review by The Old Vic of his time in charge of the theatre.
Claims against Spacey in 2017 led to the end of his involvement in the filming of the final season of the political drama "House of Cards".
He was also dropped from a Gore Vidal biopic on Netflix and as the industrialist J. Paul Getty in "All the Money in the World".
D.Kaufman--AMWN