Social experiment to highlight sexual assault on the Tube branded 'f***ing stupid'

The hidden cameraman had to intervene as commuters confronted the male actor

A 'social experiment' that attempted to raise awareness of sexual assault on the London Underground got out of hand, with a hidden cameraman having to intervene.

The 'experiment' begins with a young blonde woman being groped by a fellow actor, as he puts his hand on hers as she grips a handrail before continuing to make unwarranted advances.

Other commuters intervene as the woman becomes visibly distressed, while one asks why the man is touching her. The actor responds by saying "Because I want to touch her."

A scuffle between the male actor and the real passengers appears to be on the verge of breaking out before the hidden cameraman intervenes and commuters are told that they are both actors part of a social experiment.

One commuter's reaction is to call the stunt "f****** stupid", while a man who was protecting the supposed victim pushes the camera away from his face.

The female actress justifies the stunt by saying: “We’re trying to raise awareness about sexual assault on trains because a lot of the times, people see it happening and no one says anything."

The video was produced by self-professed 'collective of social misfits' Trollstation. The group's YouTube channel describes their own videos as 'intentionally provocative.'

"Our content is intentionally provocative & controversial with the aim to get reactions from the general public in the name of comedic Satire. Trollstation is a collective of social misfits playing mad mind games on the public. GET INVOLVED."

Rachel Griffin, director of the Suzy Lamplugh Trust, a charity that has worked with TfL on improving passenger safety, said: "While we welcome attempts to draw attention to the serious issue of sexual assault on public transport, it is not completely clear what the message of this video is.

"Suzy Lamplugh Trust would never recommend meeting aggression with aggression and the comment from one of the actors in the video that the situation could have escalated into something else – presumably violence – should also be taken seriously.

"We fully support the BTP campaign ‘Report it to Stop it’ which both acknowledges the seriousness of sexual assaults on public transport and offers practical, empowering advice on how to report incidents if you witness or experience them."