Australian actor Craig McLachlan was a no-show in a Melbourne court on Friday morning, despite facing multiple assault charges.
The 53-year-old TV and stage star was charged on summons in January with eight counts of indecent assault, one charge of common assault and attempted indecent assault.
McLachlan is not obligated to be present in court, with his lawyers acting on his behalf.
Last year, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and the ABC revealed several of McLachlan’s female co-stars from a production of the Rocky Horror Show had accused the actor of indecent and inappropriate behaviour.
The accusations came from his behaviour in 2014 when the production took place.
McLachlan stepped down from his role in the production after former Home and Away star Erika Heynatz, Christie Whelan Browne and Angela Scundi came forward saying the actor had “abused, harassed or assaulted” them during the stage show.
McLachlan has always strongly denied any of the allegations.
“Dave Allen, Benny Hill lewd? Yeah, you bet. In the right company,” he told The Sunday Telegraph last year.
“The lewdness I am surrounded by on a show like Rocky Horror is, as they say on Spinal Tap, 11.
“I might be operating on 10, but all around me … in the lewd department, I am nothing compared with what’s surrounding me. As the old boy, I don’t come close in the filth department.”
Craig McLachlan has always denied the allegations against him. (Image: Getty)
In January 2018, McLachlan announced that he planned to launch legal action against both Fairfax and the ABC for the “annihilation of his career” after reporting claims of sexual misconduct and bullying.
“By God I will fight this, and the truth, the truth will come out,” he told The Sunday Telegraph.
“Does being cheeky and naughty equate with being a bully? No, it does not,” he told the publication at the time.
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Craig McLachlan and his partner Vanessa. (Image: Getty)
Craig as Frank-N-Furter in The Rocky Horror Picture Show. (Image: Getty)
In October 2018, The Blake Mysteries star Nadine Garner spoke candidly to The Australian Women’s Weekly about the “grieving” she went through after news broke that her on-screen husband Craig McLachlan was accused of bullying and sexual assault.
“I went through a grieving for what happened to Craig personally and professionally,” she said.
Nadine described Craig at the time as “flirty, fun, cheeky and a bit bawdy at times,” before adding “and he’s been that way for 30 years.”
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Meanwhile, Craig McLachlan’s partner Vanessa Scammell also spoke out on the allegations last year, telling 2GB that the last few months had been tough for the couple.
“We are determined and will do everything we can to move through this and clear his name and for everyone to realise that the person that is ‘Craig McLachlan’ is not the person who has been painted,” she said at the time.
