Something went wrong, please try again later. BBC Radio Northampton presenter Bernie Keith was left feeling suicidal by a 'tsunami of hate', the trial heard. xRn0+|L)%^RKXoZi;;0AQnKF. Jeremy Vine arriving at Nottingham Crown Court in July. Belfield clearly resented being there, recalls Hazell He was sulking and had a face like thunder. Mr Spedding, the trial heard, was left feeling suicidal by a "tsunami of hate" from Belfield. We were the learning curve for Belfield. He hated the thing he loved, or hated other people having success within it.. In Mr Keiths case, the abuse was sustained over nine years, with the judge saying he had no escape from Belfield, who made up and repeated a wholly false and scandalous allegation about his former friend. %PDF-1.7 % The optics arent good, says Breen. Even after YouTube stopped him making money from his channel, Belfield was still reasonably flush. Sanctimonious, petulant and remorseless, taking elements of fact and twisting them to suit his own purposes while belittling his targets and monetising these distortions, even as he sat in a prison cell. Heres Celebrity Radios BBC Bernie Keith & Ben Hewis STATEMENT. 'My initial reaction (to the alleged stalking) was ''He's gone mad'',' Mr Keith said. Alex Belfield is a 42-year-old former BBC radio star and vlogger who hails from Nottinghamshire. Between 2004 and 2010, he appeared on radio stations, including Mercia FM, Touch FM, BBC Bristol, BBC Radio Shropshire and BBC Hereford and Worcester. 2023 BBC. The verdicts in relation to each complainant were: Giving evidence to the trial, Mr Vine described Belfield's behaviour as "like an avalanche of hatred you get hit by", and "absolutely Olympic-level stalking, even for broadcasting". The former BBC radio presenter was jailed for five-and-a-half years after being convicted in September. BBC Radio Northampton presenter Bernie Keith was left feeling suicidal by a "tsunami of hate", jurors heard. Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article. He would invite viewers to send in fan mail not to any registered office but to his local pub, whose landlady he described as his receptionist. But some of the complainants feel they never really got justice. The final two victims who went to court and testified against Belfield were both from the theatre world. Addressing the jury in the third week of the trial, Mr Keith said Belfield's YouTube videos, emails and social media messages had included highly abusive language and a threat to 'hound you for the rest of your life'. Iain Lee says he was "too scared" to take former BBC radio presenter Alex Belfield to court, claiming that the convicted stalker made his life "miserable".. Belfield, 42, was sentenced to more than five years in prison on Friday after being found guilty of stalking four people, including the TV presenter Jeremy Vine, 57.. The 42-year-old, from Nottingham, is due to be sentenced on 16 September and has been warned he could be jailed. Silence was the best policy in the eyes of the corporation. endstream endobj 566 0 obj <>stream Alex Belfield was born in . Read about our approach to external linking. For PR Pros Overview; Media Database . Resolved: Release in which this issue/RFE has been resolved. Ten months into the job, Belfield pushed his luck too far in an innuendo-laden chat with the stations weather presenter, in which he suggested he had been masturbating over her. 'I had this naked hate being piled on me every day and I had to be funny and I had to entertain people. A BBC radio host has revealed that alleged stalking by an ex-staff member left him contemplating suicide. The effect on Keiths life was profound. Heres the facts on what happened. Also speaking during the trial, describing watching Belfields video output as like swimming in sewage, Mr Vine said: It felt like I had a fish hook in my face and my flesh was being torn, and the only way to avoid further pain was to stay completely still.. The judge said Belfield had made "wholly false" allegations about Mr Vine stealing 1,000 of BBC licence payers' money, in a video which was viewed by more than 400,000 people. What's the least amount of exercise we can get away with? I accept the evidence that Mr Belfield effectively followed these women by online harassment throughout their careers, said the judge. Rozina Breen, the corporation's former Head of North, told . More videos coming soon.. Keith tried in vain to get YouTube to remove all of the libellous videos, even turning up at the social networks HQ to beg it in person. I AM A VICTIM OF A CRIME. 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What's the least amount of exercise we can get away with? During his trial, the court heard from his stalking victims - including BBC Radio Northampton presenter Bernie Keith. Breen and Green both think the BBC failed all four women who gave evidence against Belfield. 'I can't remember when I have had a run of good sleep of longer than five hours. A-list trainer shares the ultimate do's and don'ts of workout etiquette - revealing why you should NEVER use a metal water bottle, Trump collaborates with January 6 prison choir in release of new single 'Justice for All' - which dropped ahead of his CPAC appearance, King Charles will offer Prince Harry and Meghan a Buckingham Palace apartment when they visit UK after kicking them out of Frogmore Cottage. He added there was no escape for Belfields victims, until bail conditions were imposed ahead of his trial. BBC Radio Leeds presenter Liz Green, who was harassed for 10 years by Belfield. Both question why the corporation only really took the abuse seriously once a well-known man Vine was involved. Green says she is deeply disappointed that the BBC did not commission an independent inquiry. Thank you for your patience. We have begged the BBC to resolve this quietly and privately. Broadcaster Alex Belfield arrested FIVE times and strip-searched in 'BBC witch-hunt' The Home Secretary has been asked to intervene in an alleged "witch hunt" of a former BBC DJ who has been . Ms Breen had been his boss at BBC Radio Leeds, Ms Green had been a fellow radio presenter, Ms Thomas had been Ms Breen's boss, and Ms Hirst joined BBC Radio Leeds as a presenter after Belfield left. For just over three minutes, the 42-year-old delivered a monologue in which he said he was in prison for simply defending himself. Finally, respite from what for some had been a decade of near-constant abuse. The judge described Mr Dehanys mother as robust for the way she dealt calmly with Belfield, telling her: Everybody needs a mother like you. Mr Justice Saini said: It was an outrageous and cruel act to call her and make a recording, which Belfield later used as content on his channel. Belfield, who is 42 and from Nottingham, was originally charged with stalking eight different people, who were mostly current or former BBC staff. 2023 BBC. The judge made restraining orders in relation to all of the complainants, including those Belfield was not convicted of stalking. The fact we were left unsupported from the acts of someone regarded as a prolific, now convicted, stalker is problematic. 'On Saturday nights I wasn't allowed to be in the (BBC Radio Northampton) building on my own. Im clearly of more risk to this country than a man who is attracted to children, he deadpanned. Mr Justice Saini had sentenced Belfield to two-and-a-half years for stalking one of the complainants, Bernie Keith. Furthermore, Alex was handed two-and-a-half years for the charge concerning BBC Radio Northampton presenter Bernie Keith and a consecutive two-and-a-half year sentence over the stalking charge . The court heard the original application was amended to add two more people who did not form part of the criminal trial. The women were told: The aim of the review is to provide recommendations to the BBC on how it can best support colleagues facing online stalking or significant social media harassment.. Why would he/they not deny it if he didnt send it? This means that we may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. The judge told Belfield he will serve up to half of his sentence in prison and the remainder on licence. This was a man who had not only eschewed lawyers to represent himself in court, but who had reported on his own trial each night online; a man who even after being found guilty, appeared on stage in Blackpool with controversial rightwing commentator Katie Hopkins, playing up his role as The Stalker as he awaited sentence. Ex-BBC presenter Alex Belfield's "campaign of harassment" had left Northampton's Bernie Keith "just seconds away" from suicide. If you can help with mounting legal costs please email alex@alexbelfield.co.uk, Uploaded by Alex Belfield at Celebrity Radio 13th March 2020. Saying he was proud of how he had managed to keep his troubles from his audience, the radio presenter continued: 'It's come at a huge personal toll. A few months in, alarm bells started to ring, remembers Liz Green, who presented the lunchtime show that followed Belfields each day. The judge, Mr Justice Saini, granted Belfield bail and told him to return to Nottingham Crown Court for sentencing next month. He also contacted Hewiss clients to undermine his business and encouraged his followers to join in with the abuse. . Belfield, of Mapperley, Nottingham, denies causing serious alarm or distress to Channel 5 and BBC Radio 2 presenter Mr Vine, former BBC Radio Leeds mid-morning show host Stephanie Hirst, Mr Keith and five other people. Video, Russian minister laughed at for Ukraine war claims, US-made cheese can be called 'gruyere' - court, AOC under investigation for Met Gala dress, The children left behind in Cuba's exodus, Alex Murdaugh's legal troubles are far from over, Saving Private Ryan actor Tom Sizemore dies at 61, Walkie Talkie architect Rafael Violy dies aged 78, Sonic boom heard as RAF Typhoon jets escort plane, Nelson's 97th-minute stunner gives Arsenal victory. At conservative gathering, Trump is still the favourite. He was terrified of you. I find you intended to maximise Mr Keiths distress.. Very soon after Vine complained, by contrast, the BBC appointed a QC to conduct its own investigation into Belfields behaviour, which it handed to Nottinghamshire police. His trial heard he made YouTube videos about them, posted messages on social media, sent emails, and also encouraged those that follow him to target them. 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