Cosby accusers to appear in TV special

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Bill CosbyImage source, AP
Image caption,
Cosby began his career doing stand-up in the 1960s

A TV show featuring interviews with some of the women who have accused Bill Cosby of sexual assault is to air in the US on Thursday evening.

The one-hour special, titled Cosby: The Women Speak, will air on the A&E channel, Variety reports.

It will include interviews with more than a dozen women, including actress Louisa Moritz, publicist Joan Tarshis and model Beverly Johnson.

Cosby, 78, faces a series of historic allegations but has not been charged.

He has denied all claims of sex abuse.

A&E said their programme will feature interviews with both new and past accusers.

Civil case

It will also look at Cosby's rise to fame and the recent controversy since the allegations surfaced.

The first allegations against the Cosby Show star came to light in 2005, when two women publicly accused the comedian of drugging and sexually assaulting them while they were unconscious.

One of the women, Andrea Constand, filed a civil case against him, which they settled out of court in November 2006.

Over the years, more women have come forward, but the allegations did not gain mainstream attention until last October when footage of a live set from comedian Hannibal Buress was posted online, in which he called Cosby a rapist.

Cosby will be questioned under oath in October as part of a civil legal case brought by Judy Huth, who accuses the comedian of sexually abusing her when she was 15.

He will answer questions from her lawyer on 9 October, while she will give her deposition a week later.

The actor has denied giving her alcohol and abusing her at the Playboy Mansion in Los Angeles in 1974.

All the allegations made against Cosby so far fall outside the statute of limitations, so he is not facing any criminal charges, although Los Angeles police have opened an investigation.

Ms Huth's case can proceed in civil court because, she says, the alleged abuse happened when she was a minor.

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