ITV News and The Guardian cleared to publish investigation into UK celebrity after injunction denied

A London court has refused a request by a British celebrity, identified in court documents as “PPT,” to block ITV News producer ITN and The Guardian from publishing a joint investigation. The ruling follows the plaintiff’s failure to appeal within the court-set deadline, removing the legal barrier to the outlets’ planned release of the story.

The investigation, which journalists say is based on interviews with more than 100 individuals – including friends, former partners and colleagues – alleges that PPT engaged in inappropriate and exploitative sexual activities with girls and young women, as well as misconduct toward junior female employees at a separate workplace.

PPT’s legal team argued that publication would be “highly likely” to trigger another suicide attempt, citing two prior self-harm incidents in May and July. Mr Justice Nicklin acknowledged the risk as “genuine, grave and closely connected” to the court’s decision, but concluded that protecting the individual from self-harm is the responsibility of health services rather than a blanket publication ban.

“The evidence does not establish that suicide is an inevitable consequence of publication or that psychiatric treatment and containment are incapable of providing substantial protection,” the judge wrote.

Gavin Millar, representing ITN and The Guardian, maintained that the outlets have a duty to disclose information that serves the public interest. The Guardian has been examining the celebrity’s conduct since 2023, while ITV News began a separate probe into alleged mistreatment of junior female staff before the two organizations combined their investigations in April 2023.

Industry observers note that the story is expected to be published as early as Tuesday afternoon, though earlier speculation about a programming gap on ITV proved unfounded.