Former The Challenge and Ex on the Beach cast member Stephen Bear appeared in court on Friday on charges related to allegations that he secretly recorded and shared sexual images of his ex-girlfriend and co-star, Georgia Harrison.
The 31-year-old appeared in front of magistrates in Colchester, Essex in England, to face charges including voyeurism, disclosing private, sexual photographs and films with intent to cause distress and harassment without violence.
Following his appearance, he shared several updates about what he claimed happened inside and outside of the courtroom.
Stephen Bear attends court date in Essex
According to reports, Bear arrived at court in a black Mercedes, dressed in a sky blue shirt with open collar and trousers. The Celebrity Big Brother winner and multiple-time Challenge competitor posed for photographs before heading inside the magistrates’ court.
He was arrested this past January at Heathrow Airport on charges related to his alleged secret recording of himself having sex with ex-girlfriend Georgia Harrison at his home and sharing the content with others.
It’s alleged on August 2 of last year, Bear secretly recorded the footage of himself and his ex on CCTV security cameras at his home and then shared that footage to his OnlyFans and Pornhub.
He received official charges this past May and was given the July 2 court date as his first in the case proceedings.
Based on comments Bear made in his IG Story videos following the appearance, he has to wait another month before entering his plea. His next court appearance is set for July 30 at Chelmsford Crown Court in Essex.
According to the Daily Mail, Bear’s legal representative indicated in court that he intends to plead not guilty to all charges. Representatives for Georgia Harrison also reportedly said she has waived her right to anonymity in the case.
After his court appearance, Bear shared several stories on social media about things he said happened before he got into the court and once he was inside. However, some of those stories have been disputed.
Bear shared ‘wild’ story about alleged incident outside court
Ahead of his court appearance, Bear shared videos of himself on his official Instagram as he arrived at court in his car. He also provided some additional updates following his appearance, which came while he was sitting shirtless in a garden.
In one of the updates, he mentioned that a woman rushed at him outside the court and threw a tomato at him, requiring a policeman to intervene on his behalf.
“Ah man that was wild. So you had all the paparazzi outside. Loads of ‘em. Crowds of people. Police there. Out of nowhere, I see a woman running towards me. She only threw a tomato,” Bear said in his IG Story, chuckling.
Bear went on to say the woman yelled “Boo” as she threw it at him, and he dodged it. He also said he wanted to “uppercut” the woman, but before he knew it a police officer “rugby tackled her” so Bear could get into the magistrates’ court.
However, according to the Daily Mail, other people outside court claimed the incident involving the woman throwing a tomato at Bear never happened.
In another part of his IG Story update, Bear claimed that he was told, “Mr. Bear, you’re not going to get any special treatment.” He said once he was in court, he had to state his name, date of birth, and where he was from. Bear said after he was seated for a bit, he was asked to stand up again.
He went on to say the judge told him something else in the court he really shouldn’t share. Bear indicated a magistrate told him they were going to go “old school” on him and when he asked what they meant, he jokingly said he was told, “Guillotine! Give him the guillotine.”
Bear added he wasn’t sure what that meant so he’d have to “Google it” and asked if anyone watching his video knew what it meant.
Bear and Georgia dated after meeting on The Challenge
Georgia Harrison, 26, originally appeared on Love Island UK before going on MTV’s The Challenge: War of the Worlds, which was filmed in 2018 and was televised in 2019. Georgia was amongst the finalists in her debut season. She met Bear during the filming, and the two dated briefly after the show.
They were both part of the sequel season, War of the Worlds 2. Neither reached the final that season. While Bear returned for Total Madness, that was his last appearance. Georgia has not appeared on The Challenge since WOTW2.
In addition to appearing on The Challenge, Shipwrecked, Ex on the Beach, and Celebrity Big Brother, Bear also appeared on the TV shows Celebs Go Dating in 2017 and Eating with My Ex in 2019.
Bear has previously claimed the allegations against him are “silly rumors”, and accused Harrison of “fake crying.”
He has been sharing updates about his life and the court situation via a new Instagram account he started in May.
The reality TV star reportedly moved back in with his parents following his arrest earlier this year and was said to be “keeping a low profile” after leaving his home due to fears of “death threats.”
The Challenge Season 37 premiere date is TBA for 2021 on MTV.