And in Johnny Depp's corner... the celebrity therapist struck off for seducing his female patients: Pirates of the Caribbean star's shamed sidekick was once outed for his 'affairs with vulnerable women'

  •  Beechy Colclough, 73, a celebrity therapist has been attending court with Depp
  • He had affairs with vulnerable women patients and was struck off by the BACP
  • Mr Colclough has helped Kate Moss, Sir Elton, Michael Barrymore and more
  •  A victim of his said: 'What he did is little better than abuse or rape'

 Johnny Depp is being supported through his bitter libel case against ex-wife Amber Heard by a former celebrity therapist who was struck off for seducing vulnerable female patients.

Beechy Colclough, who once counted Kate Moss and Sir Elton John as clients, has been accompanying Depp to court in Virginia where the actor is suing actress Ms Heard for defamation, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.

SUPPORT: Beechy Colclough (right) behind Johnny Depp at Fairfax County Court last week

SUPPORT: Beechy Colclough (right) behind Johnny Depp at Fairfax County Court last week

Dressed in black, wearing dark glasses and for much of the early stages of the trial a mask, Colclough, who has appeared on ITV’s This Morning and the now-defunct GMTV, has been spotted arriving and leaving Fairfax County Court with the Pirates Of The Caribbean star.

A source close to Belfast-born Colclough said: ‘Beechy has been friendly with Johnny for the last three years so of course was going to be supporting him in court.

‘He has become a fundamental part of Johnny’s inner circle but perhaps for obvious reasons was worried about being spotted, given it is such a high-profile case.

‘He has been out of the public eye for some time now and so thought wearing a Covid mask to court might be a good way of protecting his identity.’

The 73-year-old shamed therapist was seen lingering outside the court in dark glasses last Tuesday after Depp, who is suing Miss Heard over a 2018 article in The Washington Post in which she described herself as ‘a public figure representing domestic abuse’, spent a gruelling day on the witness stand. Depp, 58, and Colclough have been friends since at least July 2020, when they were pictured together by celebrity photographer Ross Halfin in London.

In 2006, Colclough was exposed for having affairs with a number of vulnerable women patients in his Harley Street consulting rooms. He was struck off by the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP).

At the time, one of his victims, Janet Bell, said: ‘I feel completely liberated and no longer feel any shame. What he did is little better than abuse or rape.’ Ms Bell, who had visited the therapist for help with an eating disorder and binge-drinking, received a letter from the BACP notifying her that Colclough had not contested the claims and that he could no longer practise under its banner.

As well as Ms Moss and Sir Elton, Colclough also helped Michael Barrymore, the late comedian Caroline Aherne and supermodel Sophie Anderton.

Sir Elton was so grateful for Colclough’s help that he agreed to write the foreword to the therapist’s book, The Effective Way To Stop Drinking.

After he was banned from practising, Colclough launched himself as a rock singer, forming a group called Beechy Colclough and His Band, which has performed in small venues across the UK.

Amber Heard watches as the jury leave the courtroom for a lunch break at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Virginia earlier this month

Amber Heard watches as the jury leave the courtroom for a lunch break at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Virginia earlier this month

Meanwhile, Depp’s tactile behaviour towards Camille Vasquez, a lawyer from Brown Rudnick, the firm representing the actor, has sparked speculation.

The pair have exchanged hugs and touched each other’s hands during the trial.

Ms Vasquez, 37, is, however, reportedly dating a British man.

Miss Vasquez’s sudden stardom has led to the creation of her own hashtag – #camillevasquez – which has more than 980 million TikTok impressions.

One video featuring her courtroom objections to Miss Heard’s lawyer Elaine Bredehoft has been watched almost 30 million times.

The TikTok video, captioned ‘Where did this woman get her degree?’, coincided with a 1,820 per cent upsurge in Google searches for Southwestern Law School, where Vasquez studied.

The Depp/Heard trial is expected to finish on Friday.

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