A boy allegedly raped and sexually assaulted by members of a group of 10 adults accused of more than a decade of child abuse gave contradictory accounts to police, a court has heard.

The group of six women and four men, described by prosecutors as 'seemingly respectable', are standing trial after denying the attacks on two boys and three girls in and around Norwich and London.

Prosecutor Angela Rafferty QC told the court that much of the abuse centred around Marie Black, 34, who allegedly played an instrumental role in using the five young children as 'sexual play-things'.

The offences are said to have involved using children's toys such as Barbie dolls in sex acts, abusing the children at parties and forcing them to have sex with one another.

All of the defendants, aged between 31 and 84, deny abuse, saying the allegations were concocted by Norfolk County Council's children's services department.

Today jurors at Norwich Crown Court were shown a series of video interviews with the oldest of the five children.

'Card games'

They showed a progression in which he initially said he had not been sexually abused developing to him saying he had been forced into sexual activity since the age of two.

In one of the later interviews, he said: 'There would be parties and they would do some games where the boys were in one room with the men and the girls were in another with the women.

'The adults would have a card game and the winner would get to choose a boy to start touching their private parts and then hurt them afterwards.'

Black and several of the other defendants broke down in tears as his evidence was played.

In the earliest interview, recorded five years ago, the boy said he had never experienced any 'bad touching'.

Asked if Black, who has pleaded not guilty to sexually assaulting him, aiding him being raped and cruelty, had ever done anything he did not like, he said: 'No.'

The following year, he told police Michael Rogers, accused of rape and sexual assault, touched his 'bits' and showed the children adult films.

Asked why he had not told police about this earlier, he said: 'I forgot.'

The third interview, recorded after another year, showed him holding a teddy bear as he described how Black would allegedly take photographs of co-defendants Jason Adams, Rogers and Anthony Stadler having sex with him and the other children.

'They used to make us stand naked and tell us what to do,' the boy said.

Asked about Black, he said: 'She would stand there laughing. I just thought it was usual and that everybody did it.'

He went on to describe how he had been forced to have sex with others, including Kathleen Adams, who is now aged 84.

Prosecutors have accepted mistakes were made by social workers on the case - including key documents being tampered with.

But opening the case yesterday, Mrs Rafferty said any suggestion the allegations were made up was 'nonsense'.

She added: 'The idea that it is somehow them who planted these memories or got the children to make up these stories is an attempt to deflect you from the dreadful truth.'

Black also denies charges including neglect and ill-treatment, sexually assaulting children under 13, conspiracy to cause children to watch sexual acts and causing child pornography.

Nine others are accused of offences including rape, child cruelty, causing children under 13 to engage in sexual activity and sexual assault.

They are Rogers, 53, from Romford; and Jason Adams, 43, Carol Stadler, 59, Anthony Stadler, 63, Nicola Collins, 36, Andrew Collins, 52, Judith Fuller, 31, Denise Barnes, 43, and Kathleen Adams, all from Norwich.