Doctor Who star Noel Clarke was pictured for the first time today after being arrested during a five-hour raid of his house – days after defeat in his sex abuse libel case.

The BBC actor was seen walking through West London wearing a Polo Ralph Lauren hoodie, Toronto Blue Jays baseball cap, Nike Air Max trainers and blue jeans.

It comes after Metropolitan Police detectives went to the star’s family home in Kensington just before 9am yesterday with a specialist dog unit used in the search.

Clarke, 49, was questioned in custody and later released amid an investigation led by the Met’s Central Specialist Crime Command which began on September 1.

Officers spent at least five hours at his home and were left with boxes containing laptops and documents, but the Met has not yet revealed what he was arrested for.

It follows Clarke’s failed libel case against the Guardian, which saw more than 12 women gave evidence alleging they were sexually abused or harassed by the actor.

Earlier this week, a High Court judge ruled Clarke must pay at least £3million of the Guardian publisher’s legal costs after pursuing a ‘far-fetched’ and ‘false case’ against the newspaper’s reporting of allegations of sexual misconduct.

Noel Clarke is seen walking through West London today after police arrested him yesterday

Clarke is in a Polo Ralph Lauren hoodie, Toronto Blue Jays cap and Nike Air Max trainers toda

Clarke sued Guardian News and Media (GNM) over seven articles and a podcast, including an article in April 2021.

The publisher said 20 women who knew him professionally had come forward with allegations of misconduct, including harassment and sexually inappropriate behaviour.

The BBC actor denied the allegations, and his lawyers previously said the newspaper had acted as the ‘judge, jury and executioner’ of his career.

GNM defended its reporting as being both true and in the public interest and in a judgment last month, judge Mrs Justice Steyn agreed.

At a High Court hearing on Tuesday, she said Clarke must pay £3million ahead of a detailed assessment into the total costs to be recovered, estimated to be above £6million.

In her judgment, Mrs Justice Steyn found Clarke was ‘not a credible or reliable witness’ during the trial earlier this year, and he showed a ‘general pattern of only being prepared to admit that which was established by documentary evidence’.

During the trial, Mr Clarke also accused GNM, along with a number of women who made accusations against him, of being part of a conspiracy that was set out to destroy his career