From The Guardian
The Coronation Street actor Bill Roache said he thought he was going to prison after mishearing the jury at the end of his rape trial last week. The 81-year-old said it was not until the judge ordered that he be released from the dock that he realised he had been acquitted.
Roache, who plays Ken Barlow in the ITV soap, was found not guilty by a jury of two counts of rape and four counts of indecent assault following a four-week trial at Preston crown court on Thursday.
In an interview with the Mail on Sunday, he said: "I didn't hear the verdict properly. I didn't hear a couple of 'nots'. I thought I had gone on two [charges] – I just heard guilty, guilty. I really thought they had got me."
The newspaper reported that he made the comments at a meeting of the spiritualist group Circle of Love at their base in Ashton-under-Lyne near Manchester.
He also strongly criticised Mr Justice Holroyde, who he said sided with the prosecution case during the trial.
Meanwhile, police say they are to review information they received from "a number of other people" during Roache's trial. Lancashire police said on Saturday they had been contacted with further information but there was no current investigation.
A spokeswoman said: "During the course of the trial of Mr Roache, a number of other people have contacted the police with further information. This information will be reviewed to ascertain what action, if any, needs to be taken in relation to it."
See also: Ken returns to Corrie this summer
Roache, who plays Ken Barlow in the ITV soap, was found not guilty by a jury of two counts of rape and four counts of indecent assault following a four-week trial at Preston crown court on Thursday.
In an interview with the Mail on Sunday, he said: "I didn't hear the verdict properly. I didn't hear a couple of 'nots'. I thought I had gone on two [charges] – I just heard guilty, guilty. I really thought they had got me."
The newspaper reported that he made the comments at a meeting of the spiritualist group Circle of Love at their base in Ashton-under-Lyne near Manchester.
He also strongly criticised Mr Justice Holroyde, who he said sided with the prosecution case during the trial.
Meanwhile, police say they are to review information they received from "a number of other people" during Roache's trial. Lancashire police said on Saturday they had been contacted with further information but there was no current investigation.
A spokeswoman said: "During the course of the trial of Mr Roache, a number of other people have contacted the police with further information. This information will be reviewed to ascertain what action, if any, needs to be taken in relation to it."
See also: Ken returns to Corrie this summer
Download our App | Follow on Twitter @CoroStreetBlog | Like on Facebook
All original work on the Coronation Street Blog is covered by a Creative Commons License