83 more days behind bars for Naked Rambler

Published on Tuesday 4 September 2007 12:00

THE Naked Rambler has been ordered to serve a further 83 days in prison after picking up his 11th conviction for breach of the peace.

Stephen Gough, 48, was picked up by police officers on July 31 on his release from Saughton prison wearing only a pair of boots.

A number of pedestrians and motorists witnessed Gough, and one driver even tooted his car horn at him. He denied his nudity amounted to a breach of the peace at Edinburgh Sheriff Court yesterday.

But Sheriff Kathrine Mackie disagreed and ordered him back to prison - where he has been almost continuously for the last 16 months.

His solicitor, John Good, pointed out that the jail time he had served was the equivalent of a three-year term, but said his client still refused to wear clothes and planned to continue his solitary confinement at Saughton. He told the court: "It is Mr Gough's position that people should not be afraid of the human state."

The ex-Marine, who comes from Hampshire, was originally arrested during a trek the length of Britain as part of a campaign for the advocacy of public nudity.