Graham Norton has won a legal battle to unmask the person behind a Facebook page he claims spent years spreading false and harassing claims about him and his family.
The presenter successfully applied to a US court for an order requiring Meta to hand over information that could identify the operator of a page called The Westminster Wire, which he says has been used to publish a sustained campaign of abuse.
The page currently has 8.9k followers.
The broadcaster sought the information so he could pursue legal action in England against the individual responsible for the posts.
According to filings obtained by the Irish Independent, the Facebook page allegedly published multiple posts a day containing false claims about Norton, including accusations of racist behaviour and fabricated reports about his personal life and health.
Norton told the court the content has been ‘deeply upsetting’ not only to him but also to those closest to him.
Among the most upsetting incidents, according to the Irish Independent, was his 94-year-old mother encountering posts falsely claiming she had died.
The star also said friends had contacted him after seeing false reports about his and his husband’s health, leaving him repeatedly forced to reassure people that the claims were untrue.
He told the court he had spent considerable time addressing concerns from family members, friends, and acquaintances who had been exposed to the content.
The legal application was filed in the US because Meta, the parent company of Facebook, is headquartered in California.
The court has now granted the request, meaning Meta will be required to provide information capable of identifying the person behind the account.
The ruling clears the way for Norton to begin the next stage of his legal action in England.
While public figures are often subjected to criticism online, Norton argued that the material published by the page went far beyond commentary and instead amounted to a deliberate and ongoing campaign of harassment based on falsehoods.
The case highlights the growing willingness of celebrities and public figures to use the courts to challenge anonymous online accounts accused of spreading misinformation and defamatory claims.
Norton, one of Britain’s most popular broadcasters, has hosted some of television’s biggest entertainment programmes during a career spanning decades, making the alleged campaign particularly visible to both fans and those close to him.
Now, after securing the court order, he is one step closer to discovering who was behind it.
Metro has contacted representatives of Graham Norton for comment.