Krishnan Guru-Murthy caught checking emails on his phone while driving through central London

Guru-Murthy initially insisted he had not broken the law but pleaded guilty when facing the prospect of a trial
WEST END FINAL

Get our award-winning daily news email featuring exclusive stories, opinion and expert analysis

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

Channel Four News presenter and Strictly Come Dancing contender Krishnan Guru-Murthy is “ashamed” after being convicted of using his mobile phone while driving through central London, a court has heard.

The TV broadcaster, 53, faced prosecution by police after he was spotted by a passing motorcyclist checking emails while at the wheel of his Tesla.

Despite the incident being caught on camera, Guru-Murthy initially insisted he had not broken the law.

But when facing a trial this week he pleaded guilty and admitted not fully understanding the laws around mobile phones and driving.

“He holds his hands up”, the broadcaster’s lawyer Simon Gretton told Ealing magistrate’s court this week.

“He is a completely law-abiding gentleman and he is ashamed of this.”

A bench of magistrates ordered the TV star to pay a £300 fine, a further £300 in costs, and a £120 victim surcharge. He also now has six penalty points on his licence.

The incident happened on a rain-soaked evening in March, shortly after the Channel Four News show had ended and as Guru-Murthy drove along Marylebone Road near to Regent’s Park and Madame Tussauds at 8.20pm.

Footage from motorcyclist Lukas Kozesnik’s helmet camera shows Guru-Murthy, in the driver’s seat of the Tesla, using the smart phone handset with his left hand as his car was stationary and waiting for the traffic lights to turn green.

Mr Kozesnik said in his witness statement: “The driver noticed me and put the phone down. We then both went on our separate but similar ways.”

When first charged with an offence through the single justice procedure, Guru-Murthy pleaded not guilty, said he wanted to challenge the motorcyclist’s evidence and insisted: “I deny using a mobile phone whilst driving.”

He was not present at court as Mr Gretton made a failed attempt to negotiate a lesser charge with the prosecutor, before entering a guilty plea on the TV star’s behalf. The solicitor said: “Mr Guru-Murthy was driving in the evening and he stopped at traffic lights. The car was stationary, it doesn’t move at any point where the phone is seen to be in his hand. The lights changed and the device was put down before the defendant moved off.”

He said the incident lasted no more than six seconds, and he pointed to a 2022 law change which tightened the rules on mobile phone use by drivers.

“He now understands and accepts that, due to relatively recent changes in the law, you don’t have to be just making or receiving a call or sending a text. You can be doing anything at all with a phone, even when stationary at traffic lights, and this is an offence. The defendant wasn’t very clear about that.”

Guru-Murthy pleaded guilty to using a handheld mobile phone while driving a motor vehicle on a road. He was given 28 days to settle the court bill totalling £720.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in