Image copyright Getty Images

British actress Lysette Anthony, known for her role as Marnie Nightingale in Hollyoaks, has defended fellow Harvey Weinstein accuser Asia Argento.

This follows allegations made by actor Jimmy Bennett that Argento sexually assaulted him in 2013.

"I cannot stand by while Asia Argento is hurled under a bus," Anthony said in an interview with The Sunday Times.

"She has been extraordinarily courageous standing up to Weinstein. And now she's being punished."

"She's being vilified and abused," she said.

Argento has denied any sexual misconduct with Bennett.

She was one of the first to speak out against Hollywood mogul Weinstein, who has been accused of sexual misconduct by more than 70 women.

Anthony alleges that Weinstein attacked her at her London home in the late 1980s.

It was a "pathetic, revolting" attack, the British actress claimed, that had left her "disgusted and embarrassed".

Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Weinstein will next appear in court for a hearing on 20 September

"When Asia told her story it was absolutely akin to mine and I cannot in good conscience let her carry the burden," Anthony said.

"I know people have been sitting around dinner tables looking to find us complicit. But this is not a story of actresses trying to further their careers," she continued.

"I have waived my right to anonymity because it gave me a voice. But people should ask themselves a very simple question: Why am I the only actress in Britain who has had the guts to use her name? Why the silence?", Anthony asked.

Over the weekend, it was reported that Argento has been dismissed as a judge of X Factor Italy.

Audiences will still see her on the first seven episodes of the season, which were already shot earlier this summer, but the live portion of the show is expected to begin with a new judge and the rest of the main cast in late October.

Follow us on Facebook, on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, or on Instagram at bbcnewsents. If you have a story suggestion email entertainment.news@bbc.co.uk.