Bill Cosby. Photo courtesy of Flickr. Bill Cosby. Photo courtesy of Flickr.
London

Controversial Bill Cosby Show Tonight

Despite growing controversy and promised protests, comedian Bill Cosby will hit the stage tonight at Budweiser Gardens in London.

On Wednesday night in Kitchener, show-goers were greeted outside Centre in the Square by a handful of protesters. The half-full venue gave Cosby a standing ovation at the end of his performance. No one heckled or disrupted the show.

Over a dozen women allege Cosby has drugged and sexually assaulted them in the past. Some allegations date back decades to his time as a sitcom star on The Cosby Show. For months, outraged Londoners have been calling on Budweiser Gardens to cancel the show. However, officials at the venue state contractual agreements prevent them from doing so.

Groups are planning to gather outside Budweiser Gardens around 6pm to protest Cosby's appearance, while others who have been told they cannot return their tickets plan to heckle the comedian inside.

The star issued a statement earlier this week warning fans that he expects to be harassed while on stage.

"If a disruption occurs, please remain calm until the matter is resolved and do not confront the person making the disruption," Cosby writes. "I'm going to give them the show of my life."

At least ten shows on Cosby’s tours were cancelled or postponed. NBC dropped a sit-com pilot starring Cosby and Netflix postponed the launch of the Bill Cosby: 77 comedy special.

In 2006, Cosby settled a lawsuit with a woman who alleged he drugged and raped her in 2004. There were a total of 13 women with similar stories who agreed to testify had the case gone to trial.

Tonight's show is scheduled to start at 7:30pm.

BlackburnNews.com reporter Ashton Patis will be there. You can follow her here.

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