Blue singer Lee Ryan has been convicted of the racially aggravated assault of a flight cabin crew member.
The court heard Ryan, 39, had drunk a bottle of port before boarding a British Airways flight from Glasgow to London City Airport on 31 July. During the flight he was refused more alcohol before making racist comments to flight attendant Leah Gordon saying, ‘You’re my chocolate darling, my chocolate cookie, I’m going to have your chocolate children.’
In court the flight attendant described how Ryan said to her: ‘Before this plane lands I need a kiss from you’ and when she refused, he grabbed both her wrists before passengers intervened.
She added: ‘He was towering over me, like he was leaning in to give me a kiss. I was intimidated … To get comments about my colour whether intentional or not, it was just unacceptable and so derogatory. I just felt like it wasn’t fair and I shouldn’t have to put up with it. I don’t go to work to be assaulted or harassed.’
Giving evidence, a different flight attendant said she had been approached by Ryan shortly after the plane departed, when he asked to be upgraded to business class. His request was refused because the plane was full.
'He told me he had a problem, that he was being harassed by other passengers, that he was famous and asked did I know who he was,' she said. 'He was angry, saying he was a gold-card holder and that he needed to be moved because of this.'
She told the court she had noticed Ryan was 'slurring his words and staggering around'.
Ryan denied all charges, saying his behaviour had been 'playful'. In court he said: ‘I’m sorry. My band member is black, I’m not racist, I’ve had black girlfriends, mixed-race girlfriends. It was banter, just drunk banter I suppose, there was no malice or intention to upset anyone.
‘I didn’t mean to cause any distress to anyone or be racist, it was just a poor choice of words I suppose.’
Ryan will be sentenced on 24 February.