The TV presenter Ant McPartlin has been fined £86,000 and disqualified from driving for 20 months after admitting drink-driving.
The 42-year-old entertainer crashed into two vehicles after taking a corner at speed while under the influence in Richmond, south-west London, last month. He was more than twice the legal limit.
On Monday, at Wimbledon magistrates court in south-west London, district judge Barbara Barnes told the the Saturday Night Takeaway host he had let down many people including his fans. “I think it will have quite an impact on you to know that you are no longer a man of good character but you carry a [criminal] record,” she said.
McPartlin spoke in court only to confirm his personal details and enter his guilty plea. But, through his lawyer, he expressed his remorse for what had happened.
While driving his car under the influence of alcohol, he hit a green Mini and then a red BMW as he lost control after the initial collision. In impact statements read in court, the respective drivers of the cars he crashed into said they were left heavily shaken.
Ant McPartlin speaks out about depression and addiction Read more
Faheem Vanoo, the driver of the green Mini, said his vehicle could have been hit front-on if he had not taken evasive action. “We believe we could have died as a result of Mr McPartlin’s reckless driving,” he said.
The driver of the BMW, named only as Dr Ng, said immediately after the collision her nine-year-old son, who was uninjured but in shock, told her: “I am dying, Mummy, I am dying.” She said she was suffering from neck pain and her right knee was too painful to walk on.
The court heard that in a statement submitted last month, McPartlin said: “I am ashamed and mortified that this happened. I accept full culpability for this and wish to apologise to all concerned … I am incredibly disappointed that have let myself and so many others down on this occasion.”
His lawyer, Liam Walker, told the court his client hoped the case would be a turning point for him. Referring to reports that McPartlin entered rehab after being charged, Walker said the Bafta-winning entertainer had been seeking treatment for alcohol- and emotional-related issues at the time of the incident. Walker said McPartlin had a brief relapse on the day of the incident.
Barnes said McPartlin’s culpability was high but he had shown genuine remorse.
Speaking outside, after the hearing, the I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here! host said he was truly sorry and expressed relief that no one was injured more seriously.
RECAP
Ant McPartlin fined £86k and banned from driving
TV presenter Ant McPartlin has been fined £86,000 after admitting driving while more than twice the legal alcohol limit.
The 42-year-old has also been banned from driving for 20 months after his black Mini collided with two other cars in Richmond, west London on March 18.
McPartlin was met by a waiting pack of photographers and television cameras when he arrived at Wimbledon Magistrates’ Court on Monday.
He stepped out of a black Mercedes people carrier to face the media scrum as he walked up the steps at the main entrance to the court building in south-west London, which was guarded by seven police officers.
He spoke to confirm his name, date of birth, address and nationality before pleading guilty to a single charge of drink-driving.
The charge states he had 75 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath, the legal limit is 35 microgrammes per 100 millilitres of breath.
McPartlin, who lives in Chiswick, west London, was arrested at around 4pm on March 18 after a failing a roadside breathalyser test following a collision between the Mini he was driving and two other cars.
The Metropolitan Police previously confirmed that a number of individuals were treated at the scene for minor injuries, and a child passenger from one of the cars was taken to hospital to be checked as a precaution.
Prosecutor Katie Sinnett-Jones told the court Mr McPartlin was driving around a “sharp bend and lost control” at which point he ended up on the wrong side of the road.
He collided with another Mini Cooper car before driving “straight into the front of an oncoming car”.
McPartlin’s vehicle “came to a halt and was no longer driveable due to the damage caused” she said. Members of the public called the police.
The driver of the Mini car said afterwards, the court heard, that they thought they would die in the collision.
Read the full story here.
Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Ant McPartlin apologises outside court following drink driving sentence
TV presenter Ant McPartlin has been fined £86,000 and given a 20-month driving ban after pleading guilty to drink driving.
Speaking outside Wimbledon Magistrates' Court, he said: "I let myself down, I let a lot of people down. For that I'm truly sorry."
He also said he was "thankful no-one was hurt" in the three-car collision in Richmond, London, on 18 March.
The court heard he had been more than twice the drink drive limit.
In a letter read out in court, McPartlin also said he was "ashamed and mortified" and "accepts full responsibility" for what happened.
Image copyright Julia Quenzler Image caption McPartlin had a previous "examplary character", the judge said
The fine is thought to be one of the largest handed down in a British court for a drink driving offence.
The mother of the Britain's Got Talent and Saturday Night Takeaway presenter was in the passenger seat of his Mini at the time of the collision, the court heard.
In a witness statement, the driver of one of the cars said he and his wife "could have died as a result of Mr McPartlin's reckless driving".
View from court: BBC entertainment correspondent Colin Paterson
In court, Ant McPartlin - wearing a dark three-piece suit and black tie - looked down and slowly nodded a number of times as he heard that he was being fined and given a 20-month disqualification from driving.
Extracts from a statement that he had given the police included the words "ashamed", "mortified", "sorrow" and "regret".
There was no Dec to support him in court. This was Ant alone, behind the glass of a witness box - the furthest from his TV persona that he had ever been seen in public.
Outside court there were more apologies from McPartlin in a prepared statement and then a hasty exit into a waiting people carrier as shouted questions, not unexpectedly, went unanswered.
Britain's Got Talent's pre-recorded audition shows mean that he will still be on Saturday night TV for the next two months. But his brief emergence at the top of the steps at Wimbledon Magistrates' Court could be his last live appearance for a long time.
The court heard McPartlin had 75 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath when he was breathalysed - the legal limit is 35 microgrammes per 100 millilitres of breath.
District Judge Barbara Barnes described McPartlin as a "well-known and successful entertainer", taking his weekly income of about £130,000 into consideration when calculating the fine.
Image copyright Getty Images Image caption McPartlin said the court appearance was a "turning point" for him
Sentencing him, the district judge said: "At the time when it happened you were struggling with various personal problems and also alcohol issues for some months.
"This incident happened, sadly, when it seems you suffered a brief relapse."
She described McPartlin's previous "exemplary character", adding: "I think it will have quite an impact on you to know you're no longer a man of good character."
She added: "Because of the seriousness of this offence, the financial pain must be imposed on you as on any other offender."
McPartlin's driving ban can be reduced by five months, to a total of 15 months, if he completes a drink-drive referral programme by mid-May 2019.
Image copyright PA Image caption The judge said he was "no longer a man of good character"
Prosecutor Katie Sinnett-Jones told the court the incident happened at around 3.50pm on 18 March on Lower Richmond Road.
She said McPartlin was driving around a "sharp bend and lost control" and then ended up on the wrong side of the road.
He collided with another Mini car before driving "straight into the front of an oncoming car".
Image copyright Getty Images Image caption McPartlin arrived at court to a media scrum
McPartlin's vehicle "came to a halt and was no longer driveable due to the damage caused", she added.
In a statement read to the court, the driver of the other Mini said: "Myself and my family were in deep shock as we believed we could have died as a result of Mr McPartlin's reckless driving."
'Sorrow and regret'
McPartlin's barrister Liam Walker said his client has expressed both his "sorrow and regret" and knows the consequences could have been much worse.
The presenter knows people in the public eye should provide a positive example to others and his court appearance is a "turning point" for him, the lawyer added.
The Metropolitan Police previously said that a number of individuals were treated at the scene for minor injuries, and a child passenger from one of the cars was taken to hospital to be checked as a precaution.
Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Ant and Dec present Britain's Got Talent on ITV
McPartlin's barrister said his client had been seeking help for "alcohol and emotional issues" at the time of the crash.
He told the judge the incident was down to "a brief relapse" unbeknownst to McPartlin's mother.
"Anthony McPartlin is sorry and is doing everything he can to ensure this never happens again," Mr Walker said.
"He hopes that in time he can make himself better and that he might be forgiven by all of the many people he knows and he feels he has let down terribly."
After he was charged, his publicist confirmed McPartlin was taking time off from his TV commitments. He is currently seeking treatment.
His presenting partner Declan Donnelly hosted the final two episodes of Saturday Night Takeaway alone and will also host Britain's Got Talent on his own, although McPartlin was seen on the ITV show over the weekend as the talent show aired its pre-recorded audition shows.
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Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Ant McPartlin arrived half an hour before the case was due to start
TV presenter Ant McPartlin has arrived at Wimbledon Magistrates' Court ahead of his court appearance.
The 42-year-old star, charged with drink driving, was dropped off at the London court in a black Mercedes.
He was charged after allegedly being involved in a collision with two other cars while driving his Mini in Richmond, London, on 18 March.
Mr McPartlin arrived wearing a black suit, white shirt and black tie amid a media scrum at the court entrance.
A drink driving conviction could lead to a driving ban of at least a year, an unlimited fine and up to six months in prison.
Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Ant and Dec have worked together since they were children
Mr McPartlin is currently seeking rehabilitation treatment. After he was charged, his publicist confirmed the presenter was taking time off from his TV commitments.
The Britain's Got Talent and Saturday Night Takeaway star first entered a rehabilitation centre in June 2017, after developing an addiction to prescription painkillers following a knee operation in 2015.
He later said he was "overwhelmed" by the public support.
Co-presenter Declan Donnelly hosted the final two episodes of Saturday Night Takeaway alone and will also host Britain's Got Talent on his own, although Mr McPartlin was seen on the ITV show over the weekend as the talent show aired its pre-recorded audition shows.
Image copyright PA Image caption Dec (centre) was joined by Scarlett Moffatt and Stephen Mulhern on Saturday Night Takeaway
Ant and Dec have established themselves as one of Britain's most popular double acts and, for the 17th consecutive year, were voted by viewers as TV's best entertainment presenters at the National Television Awards in January.
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