Charlie Gilmour, 21, was sentenced to 16 months in prison following his disgraceful antics during demonstrations over changes to education funding in December last year. The son of Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour was back in court today to hear the result of his appeal and the news was not good.
His team argued that over the last few months, Charlie had managed to become a reformed character who had been rehabilitated from his previous drug and alcohol issues. I find it hard to understand how Gilmour thought that saying sorry and promising to be a good boy in future could excuse his actions during the protests in central London.
Gilmour, who was believed to have been heavily under the influence of LSD and alcohol at the time, had attacked a shop in which staff and customers were being effectively held hostage by the mob outside, took part of a mannequin from the shop once the windows finally gave way. He had attempted to set fire to a bundle of newspapers that were placed against the wooden doors of the Supreme Court but the fire failed to take hold.
In his most infamous moments of lunacy he threw a rubbish bin at a car carrying the Prince of Wales, the Duchess of Cornwall and later decided to swing from a flag at the Cenotaph.
Thankfully the judge presiding over the appeal, Lord Justice Hughes ruled that the original sentence for an offence of Violent Disorder was neither “manifestly excessive or wrong in principle”. Gilmour had hoped to be able to return to his studies for a degree at Cambridge. Perhaps he should have considered the implications of his actions before defiling a national monument and attacking members of the Royal Family.
