Michael Barrymore has hit back at a Channel 4 documentary about the death of Stuart Lubbock at his home in 2001. The comedian and TV presenter, 67, told Good Morning Britain that Barrymore: The Body in the Pool, which aired in February, was “vile and vicious” and had left him in “pain and agony”.
His appearance on the ITV morning show, accompanied by a solicitor, comes after police reopened the investigation into Lubbock’s death. The 31-year-old was found dead at Barrymore’s home in an apparent drowning, following a party. A postmortem also found that he sustained internal injuries consistent with a sexual assault. In 2002, a coroner reported an open verdict. Barrymore and two other men were later arrested in 2007, but did not face charges.
Barrymore sued Essex police in 2015 and a judge ruled he could receive compensation for loss of earnings. Essex police later appealed this and the court of appeal decided he was entitled to nominal damages only. Barrymore later dropped his claim.
Once a mainstay of British light entertainment with shows such as Strike It Lucky and My Kind of People, Barrymore’s career has stalled since Lubbock’s death. Appearing last year on Piers Morgan’s ITV show Life Stories, he described himself as “100% innocent”.
On Good Morning Britain, also hosted by Morgan and Susanna Reid, he hit out at the documentary, which his lawyer James Heath described as “one-sided”. Heath also claimed that the documentary makers had previously approached Barrymore about appearing in a celebratory programme, and that the editorial line had changed after he declined. While he said that Lubbock’s family had suffered more than he had, Barrymore said that Lubbock’s father had made attacks on him for publicity, and hit out at accusations on social media and in the press (“How many times am I supposed to be kicked? How many times am I supposed to take it?”).
In a statement, Channel 4 said: “The documentary was balanced and explored Mr Barrymore and the Lubbock family’s treatment by the press. In accordance with the Ofcom Broadcasting code, Mr Barrymore was given a fair opportunity to respond to significant allegations and his position was fairly reflected in the documentary. Channel 4 looked at an earlier proposal for a documentary with Mr Barrymore’s participation, however after further research the programme was not commissioned”.
Essex police have appealed for new leads in the case, offering a £20,000 reward for information.
