A JUDGE has told a village doctor at a GP surgery near Taunton he will face trial accused of depositing his semen in cups of tea he gave to a woman.

Dr Nicholas John Chapman, 54, pleaded not guilty to two charges of sexual activity without consent when he appeared at Taunton Crown Court today (Thursday, February 24).

He is accused of attempting on September 13 last year to cause a woman aged 16 or over to engage in sexual activity by causing her to ingest his semen when she did not consent and he did not reasonably believe that she did.

He is also alleged to have committed the same offence on at least one occasion between September 12 2020 and September 12 2021.

Mr Recorder John Trevaskis told Chapman he would remain on conditional bail imposed at a previous appearance at Taunton Magistrates' Court.

A date for the trial at Taunton Crown Court, which is estimated to last four or five days, is yet to be set.

The complainant in the case, who cannot be named for legal reasons, will give her evidence from behind a screen when the case comes to trial.

Father-of-three Chapman, who lives in Kingston St Mary with his partner, is currently suspended from his post at the 4,000-patient North Curry Health Centre.

He was born in South Africa, where he qualified as a doctor at the University of Cape Town in 1993.