Scots actor John Barrowman has insisted he does not ‘regret anything’ after misconduct allegations saw him ‘blacklisted’ from the entertainment industry.
The Glasgow-born star has struggled to find work since he was accused of exposing himself to co-workers while on set of Doctor Who and Torchwood.
But the Captain Jack Harkness actor has now defended the behaviour which allegedly took place during filming of the BBC shows between 2005 and 2011 and insisted: ‘I don’t regret anything.’
The apparent behaviour came to light in 2021, but when asked by STV’s Scotland Tonight if his colleagues agreed his behaviour was simply ‘silliness and a bit of a carry on’, Mr Barrowman said: ‘Nobody complained.’
Pressed on whether his role as the ‘star of the show’ complicated the power dynamic on set, Mr Barrowman said on Doctor Who he was not, and just one of the companions.
He added: ‘Everybody was doing outrageous, silly things. It’s just that they weren’t dragged into this situation by a piece of lazy journalism.’
And when questioned if he was ‘basically flashing’, Mr Barrowman insisted: ‘No, no, no, no, no. This is where it gets a little misconstrued. I was not walking around flashing people randomly and doing things like that.
‘If I were doing a nude scene… they’d say, “do you want to go back to the trailer” I’d say, “no just leave me here” – it was meant to be a closed set – and I’d say, “leave me here and let’s save time, I’ll just stand here and it’ll save time that I don’t have to go back, have to change, then you have to bring me back and we have to start all over again”.
John Barrowman says he does not ‘regret anything’ after misconduct allegations saw him ‘blacklisted’ from the entertainment industry
John Barrowman as Captain Jack Harkness in Torchwood
‘So I would stand there, if I was in a nude scene, completely naked, and if somebody walked on set, which they weren’t supposed to or they were, I might just do something like that [jiggles] and it was nothing outrageous.
‘I didn’t see it as outrageous. It was a different time.’
In 2021, Mr Barrowman, who is promoting his UK tour Laid Bare, was dropped as a judge on STV’s Dancing on Ice following the allegations.
He has said since he was ‘blacklisted completely’ from the entertainment industry.
Asked if he regretted his actions Mr Barrowman, speaking in a Scottish accent, said: ‘I don’t regret anything.
‘It’s not so much regret; it was something that was stupid and silly and it was done.
‘I don’t look back and go… because at the time, everybody was laughing. Everybody on set was having a laugh.’
Scotland Tonight: A Conversation with John Barrowman, aires on STV and STV Player on Thursday, March 13 at 8.30pm.
