World

Rolf Harris accused of lying to jury

10:36 am on 3 June 2014

Australian entertainer Rolf Harris has been accused of deliberately lying at his trial in London on charges of indecent assault.

One of the complainants alleged Harris assaulted her at a celebrity event in the English city of Cambridge in the 1970s, but the defendant told the court he first visited Cambridge only about four years ago, according to the ABC.

The jury was played a video on Monday of Harris taking part as a team captain in a celebrity show, Star Games, in Cambridge in 1978.

The prosecution said the footage proves Harris was lying, but he said it was a memory lapse, and he did not know he was in Cambridge at the time.

Rolf Harris has been accused of deliberately lying at his trial in London. Photo: AFP FILE

Prosecutor Sasha Wass said the footage proved Harris was lying when he said he had not been to Cambridge until recently.

"That was a deliberate lie, wasn't it?" Ms Wass asked the artist and singer.

Harris replied: "No ... a lapse of memory."

The 84-year-old said he had no memory of the event until he saw the video and did not know he was in Cambridge at the time.