A man has denied killing his date in a speedboat accident on the Thames.

Charlotte Brown, 24, known as Charli, died in hospital after she and Jack Shepherd, 30, ended up in the river.

Police had been called to reports of someone in distress near Wandsworth Bridge at around 11.45pm on December 8 2015.

Shepherd, of Paddington, west London, appeared at the Old Bailey charged with manslaughter.

Jack Shepherd, 30, is charged with the manslaughter of Charlotte Brown (Steve Parsons/PA)
Jack Shepherd, 30, is charged with the manslaughter of Charlotte Brown (Steve Parsons/PA)

The charge alleges that he unlawfully killed Miss Brown at Butlers Wharf, Wandsworth.

The defendant, who is on unconditional bail, entered his not guilty plea before Judge Richard Marks QC.

Shepherd, who previously lived in Bristol, is due to face a three-week trial at the Old Bailey on July 2.

Miss Brown, a business development consultant from London, has been described as “caring and fun-loving” by her family.