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This Is Going To Hurt author Adam Kay was raped in a New Zealand gay sauna

The comedian and author details his rape in his new book, Undoctored: The Story of a Medic Who Ran Out of Patients.

By Emily Maskell

Adam Kay
Adam Kay (Photo: ITV)

British writer and comedian Adam Kay has shared he was raped in a sauna while visiting New Zealand.

The This Is Going To Hurt author shares the details of his rape in his latest book, Undoctored: The Story of a Medic Who Ran Out of Patients, the Advocate has reported. 

The 42-year-old recounts how he was closeted and married with a wife when he was booked to perform a comedy set for a medical conference in New Zealand. 

Adam Kay says he aimed to have an affair with another man before returning home to the UK.

Kay shares he entered a sauna with a false name and identity and was taken by another man to a secluded corner of the building where he was raped.

As reported by The Advocate, Kay writes, “I was clear. I said no when it became obvious he wanted this interaction to go a lot further than I did. I said no, again, when he started. I said no when he overpowered me and pushed my head into a wipe-clean cushion that stank of anti­septic.”

Kay recalls screaming but not being heard due to the loud music. He also remembers that his attacker thanked him before leaving.

“Thanks. You don’t say thanks to someone you’ve just raped, do you?” Adam Kay wrote. “Was coming here in the first place my consent?”

Traumatised and terrified, Kay recounts he didn’t go to the police out of fear that an investigation would lead to his outing and that he would be blamed for the assault.

“Saying it out loud would make it real; I would never be able to deny it or pretend it never ­happened, which already felt like my only way of getting through it,” he wrote.

“Maybe I was too ashamed,” he wrote. “Or maybe I just knew from the moment it happened that I would never forget it: every minute, every second, etched into me in indelible ink, would be with me forever.”

Kay’s debut memoir, This Is Going To Hurt, was adapted to screen with Kay played by Ben Whishaw who works in a hectic obstetrics and gynecology ward in an NHS hospital.

Kay’s new book, Undoctored: The Story of a Medic Who Ran Out of Patients, is on sale now.

If you’ve been affected by any of the issues raised in this story, you can call the Samaritans on 116 123.

The Attitude September/October issue is out now.