Who is Daisy Goodwin? TV producer accuses Tory mayoral hopeful of groping her

Novelist and TV producer Daisy Goodwin has accused a Conservative mayoral candidate of groping her 10 years ago.

Ms Goodwin claimed that Daniel Korski — who is shortlisted to become the Conservative Party’s candidate for next year’s London mayoral election — put his hand on her breast during a meeting at Downing Street in 2013. At the time, Mr Korski was a special adviser to David Cameron.

Ms Goodwin first went public about the incident in 2017 but she did not name Mr Korski at the time. She said that she now wanted to name him given the fact he is a mayoral contender.

Mr Korski has denied the 61-year-old’s accusations “in the strongest possible terms”.

Who is Daisy Goodwin?

Daisy Goodwin is a BAFTA-award-nominated television producer and novelist.

The 61-year-old is the creator and producer of hugely successful and long-running shows Escape to the Country and Grand Designs. In 2005, she started her own production company, Silver River Productions, which she sold to Sony seven years later.

She has also written multiple New York Times bestselling novels, including My Last Duchess and The Fortune Hunter, as well as her memoir Silver River.

She studied history at Cambridge, before attending Columbia Film School, and then spent a decade at the BBC making art documentaries.

Ms Goodwin lives in London with her husband, television executive Marcus Wilford, and their two daughters.

What are Ms Goodwin’s allegations?

Ms Goodwin wrote in the Times that she first met Mr Korski at a social event and he suggested they meet again.

On their second meeting, Ms Goodwin visited Downing Street and met Mr Korski to discuss a possible TV project.

She wrote that Mr Korski commented on her sunglasses, saying she looked “like Monica Bellucci, the Italian actress who had recently made headlines by appearing in a Bond film opposite Daniel Craig as an older woman”.

Ms Goodwin said this felt “awkwardly flirtatious” and “odd”.

She then wrote: “When we both stood up at the end of the meeting and went to the door, the spad [special adviser] stepped towards me and suddenly put his hand on my breast.

“Astonished, I said loudly, ‘Are you really touching my breast?’ The spad sprang away from me and I left.

“Although I suppose legally his action could be called sexual assault, I have to say that I did not feel frightened. I was older, taller and very possibly wiser than the spad, and having worked for the BBC in the Eighties I knew how to deal with gropers.”

What has Daniel Korski said?

In a statement on Tuesday afternoon, Mr Korski said it was a “baseless allegation” from the past and suggested it was a political attack.

“Politics can be a rough and challenging business,” he wrote.

“I categorically deny any wrongdoing.

“It is disheartening to find myself connected to this allegation after so many years, but I want to unequivocally state that I categorically deny any claim of inappropriate behaviour. I denied it when it was alluded to seven years ago and I do so now.”

The statement does not make clear whether he plans to continue to seek the Tory mayoral candidacy nomination.

He added: “To those who have been affected by any form of misconduct or harassment, let me assure you that I stand firmly against such behaviour.

“I am committed to fostering an environment where everyone feels valued, heard and supported.”