Man wins TV licence battle (From Thurrock Gazette)
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Man wins TV licence battle
2:00pm Sunday 12th August 2012 in News
A MAN who took on the TV Licensing authority in court and won is still waiting for his costs to be paid.
Michael Shakespeare, from Grays, made sure all his equipment at home could not receive a live TV signal and watched catch up TV through the internet, which you do not need a TV licence for.
Mr Shakespeare wrote to the authority to inform it what he had done, inviting it to send someone round to check it out.
An inspector was sent round to check the equipment and Mr Shakespeare filmed it.
He heard nothing more until five months later, when a summons for court arrived in the post for non-payment of his TV licence.
TV Licensing obtained a copy of Mr Shakespeare’s video, which was uploaded on to YouTube, and said it showed a frozen image on a TV screen of The One Show, proving Mr Shakespeare was receiving live TV.
But Mr Shakespeare said the image was not present in his original video.
In a landmark case at Basildon Crown Court, the judge found Mr Shakespeare had no case to answer, as TV Licensing could not prove the validity of the video. Their own inspector also said in court he had not seen the frozen image when he visited.
The judge ordered that Mr Shakespeare’s defense costs, in the region of £3,000, be paid through central funds, a separate source of funding managed by the Ministry of Justice.
He said: “This case wasted a year of my life and cost me in the region of about £18,000 as I had to employ expert witnesses.
“It was a brilliant result because it proved they didn’t have a shred of evidence that was arguable in law, but they still went ahead anyway.
“I believe they were trying to punish me because I was a political opponent to licensing.”
Comments(27)
Val Smith
says...
5:56pm Sun 12 Aug 12
Congratulations to Mr Shakespeare for sticking the boot into BBC TV Licensing.
jb411
says...
7:44pm Sun 12 Aug 12
Always Schmieling
says...
9:03pm Sun 12 Aug 12
RebelSouls
says...
9:13pm Sun 12 Aug 12
Up and down the country more and more people are seeing the true BBC and more people are saying enough is enough
Time to scrap this outdated licence tax
M.Shakey
says...
8:44am Mon 13 Aug 12
Legally Licence Free
says...
9:52am Mon 13 Aug 12
M.Shakey
says...
10:12am Mon 13 Aug 12
I am glad you noticed this part of the article Quote "But Mr Shakespeare said the image was not present in his original video.
In a landmark case at Basildon Crown Court, the judge found Mr Shakespeare had no case to answer, as TV Licensing could not prove the validity of the video. Their own inspector also said in court he had not seen the frozen image when he visited. " Unquote. The fact that both myself and EVEN the guy who 'inspected' my 'equipment' DID NOT SEE the frozen image, (that the WHOLE case was based on), seems to suggest that the 'evidence' was 'fabricated' in some way.
Sao Paulo
says...
12:10pm Mon 13 Aug 12
They also get propaganda magazines from them and are offered free courses, now can you imagine a private company getting away with this!
The latest person complaining today was naive enough to speak to the BBC sales goons, he said no comment but signed their form only to have lies added to it so they hit targets and commission, the BBC are corrupt to the core http://bit.ly/OdWdc0
Hieronymous2
says...
3:32pm Mon 13 Aug 12
It makes a refreshing change from the usual, unchallenged PR propaganda.
Cyril-Hutton
says...
4:52pm Mon 13 Aug 12
Sour Paulo
says...
5:33pm Mon 13 Aug 12
This guy will get clobbered one day, it's called karma.
Sao Paulo
says...
6:03pm Mon 13 Aug 12
Sour Paulo wrote:So the BBC's PR people are claiming the legal documentation and the Judges decision are all "set up" because the BBC is beyond doubt?
Chances are that this was a set up and not by TVL because nearly all of those who are supposedly LLF are lying in the first place.
This guy will get clobbered one day, it's called karma.
ianatthefarm
says...
6:53pm Mon 13 Aug 12
Hieronymous2
says...
8:07pm Mon 13 Aug 12
Sour Paulo wrote:I do hope you have some hard evidence to back up that assertion.
Chances are that this was a set up and not by TVL because nearly all of those who are supposedly LLF are lying in the first place.
This guy will get clobbered one day, it's called karma.
Otherwise you might get clobbered one day.
It's called libel.
MrHelsey
says...
8:55pm Mon 13 Aug 12
Well done Sir.
Always Schmieling
says...
9:34pm Mon 13 Aug 12
These people are being paid to troll websites and forums with licence fee money
LegalOccupier
says...
9:53pm Mon 13 Aug 12
Nice to see good happy news in the papers for a change.
Let us all hope more people stand up to the bullyboys when they come round banging on the doors with their threats and lies.
Hieronymous2
says...
6:03am Tue 14 Aug 12
Legally Licence Free wrote:Just noticed this:
This was an appalling abuse of privilege to actually falsify a screen image in order to win a case. The depths that this draconian bureaucracy have sunk to in order to protect their corporate interest are well outside the bounds of acceptability. The BBC along with TV Licensing should hang their heads in shame. Well Done for standing up to them. I hope you retrieve the full amount of your costs.
"The BBC along with TV Licensing........"
The BBC IS TV Licensing™
Bedsit Bob
says...
1:27pm Tue 14 Aug 12
I'm not "supposedly LLF".
I AM LLF!
M.Shakey
says...
1:39pm Tue 14 Aug 12
Sour Paulo wrote:Funny you posting comments here and not under your usual name of Mikw.
Chances are that this was a set up and not by TVL because nearly all of those who are supposedly LLF are lying in the first place. This guy will get clobbered one day, it's called karma.
"Clobbered"..Hmmm...
.Tell your paymasters from me to bring it on then....I am better prepared...and expecting them to be JUST as competent at putting the NEXT case together...... Ha...Haa.... 'NO CASE'.. sorry Mikw your TV-TAX is almost as reviled as the 'window tax' of the 1600's which inspired the phrase 'DAYLIGHT ROBBERY'.
Bedsit Bob
says...
5:13pm Tue 14 Aug 12
Hieronymous2
says...
5:58pm Tue 14 Aug 12
Bedsit Bob wrote:I think they're too used to people 'rolling over' when confronted with their "authority"!!
It was rather reckless of them, to bring a case, with evidence which even their own employee (the "man on the ground" so to speak) wouldn't corroborate.
After all they can't ever be wrong. Can they?
Sao Paulo
says...
5:02pm Wed 15 Aug 12
Legally Licence Free
says...
11:35am Fri 17 Aug 12
Well done to Michael and to everyone else who has taken positive action to deal with this outrageous intrusion.
Always Schmieling
says...
1:08pm Fri 17 Aug 12
Hats off to the TG though well done!!
Hieronymous2
says...
4:44pm Tue 21 Aug 12
Always Schmieling wrote:Yep! Fully concur with all that.
It is a shame that no national news paper has seen fit to run this story, especially since Mr S, CAN and DOES BACK UP EVERYTHING he says (unlike Auntie).
Hats off to the TG though well done!!
I wonder what's wrong with the National Press.
Sao Paulo says...
4:28pm Sun 12 Aug 12
http://www.tvlicence
resistance.info/foru
m/index.php/topic,50
93.msg32241.html