Lythgoe: I'll fight sex attack claims

TV producer Nigel Lythgoe has hit back after US singer Paula Abdul accused him of sexual assault, vowing to "fight this appalling smear with everything I have".

- Christopher Bucktin

The pop star, 61, has claimed in a lawsuit that the 74-year-old Briton touched her breasts and genitals in an elevator after filming talent show American Idol together in the early 2000s.

Series judge Abdul claims Lythgoe, who was the programme's executive producer, at one point "began shoving his tongue down her throat".

Her lawsuit also accuses him of sexually assaulting her after she left American Idol and became a judge on his other competition show So You Think You Can Dance.

On learning of the lawsuit against him, Lythgoe has now broken his silence to vehemently deny her allegations while also claiming the singer is known for her "erratic behaviour".