Big Brother star Nadia cleared of assault

Big Brother star Nadia was today cleared of assault after hitting a man in a pub who called her George.

Richard Oliver, 25, claimed Almada had a “bit of a hissy fit” and slapped him twice when he spoke to her in the Garden pub, Upper Street, Islington, North London in January.

But the celebrity trans-sexual told Highbury magistrates she was acting in self-defence after feeling threatened by the victim’s homophobic and aggressive manner.

The panel of three magistrates, led by Lady Ruth Lipton, said the prosecution had not done enough to disprove the argument of self-defence in the common assault charge and dismissed the case.

Mr Oliver told the court he spotted the winner of the reality television’s fifth series while drinking in the pub with his girlfriend, but when he approached her she told him her name was Georgia.

He said his bottom was pinched twice and on the second occasion he turned around to find Almada sitting behind him.

“I said: ’You did win Big Brother, you’re name’s George.’ I didn’t mean any offence by it – my bottom had been pinched, I wasn’t overly impressed by that fact.”

He said Almada accused him of being homophobic and then struck his face.

He told Highbury magistrates he was shocked and embarrassed at being hit.

“Then I said: ’Hang on a minute, you’re a man, I can hit you back,’ and put my drink down.”

Mr Oliver, who had a previous conviction for assault occasioning actual bodily harm, admitted he was going to hit her back.

Almada slapped him a second time before a bouncer broke up the altercation, he told the court.

Under cross-examination by Aki Achillea, defending, Mr Oliver denied “homophobic”, “disgraceful” and “aggressive” behaviour towards Almada.

He also denied saying she looked and sounded “like a bloke”.

But Almada told the court he had been verbally abusive, saying that she was a bloke, and she had felt threatened by the way he was talking to her.

“My name was George and I’m happy with that, but I’ve moved away from that. He came and said: 'You’re George' and that’s not nice for me,” she said.

She told the court her celebrity status had led people to abuse her before because of her background, and she spotted the “tell-tale signs” in Mr Oliver.

“He was standing in a authoritative physical manner in front of me with no means of escape, and I felt really, really scared. The glass was bouncing around in front of me.”

She added: “My face is what pays me my mortgage and I’m quite proud of it. I want to protect myself.”

She said there was no means of moving away from him because of where she was sitting in the bar, and felt that if she didn’t do something he was going to attack her.

She denied suggestions from Robert Canavan, prosecuting, that she had slapped Mr Oliver because she was embarrassed, or that she was dramatising the situation.

“I was not dramatising the situation, I don’t need drama in my life, it knocks on my door,” she said.

She also denied pinching Mr Oliver on the bottom, or claiming that her name was Georgia, saying Nadia was the name she had chosen for herself and that even if she wanted to deny it people would recognise her.