prisonerben

My blogs

About me

Gender Male
Occupation Prisons and Criminal Justice Consultant
Location United Kingdom
Introduction Previously known as "one of Britain's best known prisoners...he constantly questions authority and exposes the futility of the system" The Times, Ben was finally released from prison after 32 years in August 2012. Pleading guilty to the murder of a friend when I was 14 years old, I renounced violence and fought for the recognition of the inherent dignity of all human beings. As a result of speaking truth to power, I served far longer than the recommended 10 years, leading Education Secretary Michael Gove to argue that I have "been punished excessively for a crime committed as a child". One of the more intellectual of prisoner-campaigners, Ben chose to educate himself from a schoolboy level to having both undergraduate and post graduate degrees. He is currently one of very few prisoners in Britain ever to attempt a Doctorate. Ben's speciality is non-violent action and the Human Needs Theory. Now on Life Licence, I am forging a career as a CJ policy consultant, writer and - as ever - campaigner.
Interests Zen, the game of Go, yoga, wing chun, gran turismo, TV, writing, annoying prison managers, reading, military history, political philosophy, nonviolent activism, law, criminology. Trying to learn juggling.
Favorite Movies Shawshank Redemption, Sin City, Leon, Ronin, Seven Samurai, Pulp Fiction, anything with Keira Knightley.
Favorite Music Leonard Cohen
Favorite Books The Gulag Archipelago, Papillon, prison law, anything criminological that speaks to the human condition.