Richard flying home to fight claims

Widespread internet rumours predicted that Sir Cliff Richard would be the next celebrity to be accused of historic sex offences. Photo / AP

Sir Cliff Richard has plenty of reasons to remember the night of June 28, 1985. Not only did he perform in front of a crowd of 47,200 as a guest of the American evangelist Billy Graham but he also met the Bishop of Sheffield to defuse a row over his refusal to boycott apartheid-era South Africa.

Outside the Bramall Lane football ground, where the singer was to appear on stage with Graham, members of Sheffield's anti-apartheid movement demonstrated against Richard's insistence on performing charity gospel concerts in South Africa, which earned him a place on a United Nations performer blacklist.

Billy Graham. Photo / AP

"I go wherever Christians invite me to speak about Jesus. It's a platform I've been given by God," he told the Sheffield Morning Telegraph, which carried a picture of him dressed in a white suit next to Graham on the next day's front page.

Last night, Richard was preparing to relive that evening, this time for the benefit of South Yorkshire Police, after learning that he had been accused of sexually assaulting a boy aged under 16 on that night.

Having stated that he will "co-operate fully" with the police "should they wish to speak to me", he left no doubt that he is ready and willing to fly to Britain from his home in Portugal to answer questions about what happened 29 years ago.

Sources close to the 73-year-old singer said the police had not told him any details about the allegation or about his accuser, but "he is absolutely certain these allegations are false because throughout his life he has never been involved in impropriety of any kind".

Two weeks before his appearance at Bramall Lane, Richard, then aged 44 and yet to be knighted, had missed out on the biggest live event of the year, the Live Aid concert at Wembley, because he was already committed to singing at a charity gospel concert in Birmingham.

Billy Graham, who was then at the height of his worldwide popularity, had packed out Sheffield United's home ground five nights running, with approximately 200,000 people paying to see his charismatic performances, more than twice the number that witnessed Live Aid.

Richard's association with Graham dated back to 1966, when he publicly announced his Christianity as he first shared the stage with him in England, and his appearance alongside the American preacher in 1985 helped swell the numbers at the ground to its biggest crowd of that decade.

Among the paying public were hundreds of children from Christian organisations, one of whom now claims to have been assaulted by Britain's bestselling singer.

Police have given no further details about the nature of the alleged assault and it was only through reports in the media that Richard discovered the allegation involved his appearance at Bramall Lane.

Although Richard was very much aware that rumours had been swirling around the internet for well over a year, the police raid on his 2.5 million ($4.9 million) flat in Sunningdale, Berkshire, came out of the blue.

"He had no idea the police were coming," said a source close to Richard. "No appointment was made, they just turned up and demanded to be let in."

Less than 24 hours earlier, oblivious to the police operation, Richard had spent Wednesday at his vineyard on the Algarve, where he had been filmed starting up a pressing machine containing this year's harvest.

Wearing sunglasses to protect his eyes from the August sunshine, Richard cheerily announced: "God bless all who drink the product, and anyone else who doesn't drink it, you should start!"

On Sunday he had given a 45-minute interview to the English language radio station KissFM Algarve, in which he had talked about the success of his Vida Nova wine label and spoken enthusiastically about his plans to record a new album in Nashville in October.

Friends of the singer pointed out that despite the widespread internet rumours that he would be the latest celebrity to be accused of historic child abuse, no one appeared to have come forward to add any weight to the single allegation being investigated by police.

They also suggested that the BBC, which was present at his address when the police arrived to raid it, may have been tipped off by detectives.

A BBC source said a producer for the corporation had heard a rumour of the impending raid and had been watching the property.