Man behind Willy Wonka event faces trial for rape and sexual assaults

The man behind an infamously disastrous Willy Wonka experience in Glasgow is to stand trial over a series of sex crimes.

William Coull is accused of raping a woman, molesting a 14-year-old boy and sexually assaulting a 16-year-old girl over the course of 17 years.

Coull's lawyer Andrew Crosbie pled not guilty on his behalf and the case is scheduled to begin in June 2027.

The Wonka event made headlines in February 2024 after viral footage showed the £35-a-ticket event being held in a empty warehouse, with drab props and actors reading from an AI-generated script.

Coull is accused of molesting a 14-year-old boy in Glasgow's Gorbals - including in a secluded area near the city's sheriff court - on 1 December 2006.

He is then accused of sexually assaulting a 16-year-old girl at a property in the city's east end on 7 July 2024.

It is claimed he repeatedly touched her leg, tried to kiss her, seized her body and pushed her against a wall.

Coull is also alleged to have raped a woman on the same date at the same address. She is said to have been "intoxicated and incapable of consenting".

He faces an alternative accusation to the rape charge of sexual assault.

At the High Court in Glasgow both the defence advocate and prosecutor Alan MacKay agreed a trial could be fixed for next year.

Coull, of the city's Knightswood, remains on bail meantime.