As director of communications for the Conservatives he does an excellent job in a proper, upright way at all times. [36] Kate Robertson of One Young World told the Guardian "He can't do One Young World work at the moment, that is absolutely clear". So, they made me an education orderly and I went and worked with a brilliant woman who runs the education programme at Hollesley Bay and I was effectively her teaching assistant, if you like. So its just too easy, I think, either for him or for me to say, I wish it had never happened, because you make decisions in the moment. I was treated perfectly decently and fairly but its just something that you think to yourself, I cant quite believe this is happening to me. [48], However, the Crown Prosecution Service said in December 2010 that it had determined that there was insufficient evidence to charge Coulson over allegations that he was aware of phone-hacking at the publication. And, in fact, the last words from one of those prison officers to me as I was about to get on the bus were, Keep your head down, youll get through it, life moves on. Jane: You dont really talk about yourself very much. [33], Prior to the jury handing down their verdict after Coulson's trial, Cameron issued a "full and frank" apology for hiring Coulson, saying "I am extremely sorry that I employed him. That came not long after I arrived in Belmarsh and that was probably the worst moment. Jane: Well, talking of which, as a journalist, we also know the picture that everybody wants is of somebody in the prison van being taken away. I was an editor of the News of the World for four years. And in prison, as I mentioned, there was that book ban and I could not have been more delighted on the day that I finally got into the library at Belmarsh. Some people said that you deserved everything you got by going to prison and others, I think when you were talking to Richard Bacon in a previous podcast, he said that your sentence was very harsh. It was the wrong decision and I am very clear about that." I remember reading, after I came out, that I had been released after just five months on good behaviour. Jane: Were obviously talking about a whole series crises in a way with you, its like crisis Whac-A-Mole. I accepted the verdict in the end, or rather its consequences I accepted. And that just didnt happen. I dont have too many dark days any more but I do have the odd grey day, I think everybody does, for all sorts of reasons. Coulson married his wife, Eloise, in 2000. And to have a prime minister on television, while my jury was still out, although theyd delivered a verdict on the intercepting communications, they hadnt delivered a verdict on another charge that was later dropped. I told Eloise and we had discussed it before I went into prison, at what point did we think Id need to see the boys and theyd need to see me, and wed reached that point. Youve got to be either kind of 200% enthusiastic about something or youve got to be outraged. And although I stand by the position I took in court, in regard to the allegations that I ended up being found guilty of, my view is still that I didnt break the law. And I think that is a clear lesson, that the what if is as pointless as the why me?. Andy Coulson arrives at the Old Bailey on July 4, 2014 in London, England. Its a prison and a system thats designed to get prisoners re-engaging with society again and to prepare for release. Now, a lot of women, I think, in particular listening to this would think, well we wouldnt blame her for just giving up on you after all of that, but she didnt. I have apologised during the trial and Ill do it again now, here. And thats just not where I am. It turned out that all of my research and all the advice was entirely wrong and so a lot of the stuff that I took in, I had a radio, I took some books, all of that was gone, stamps were gone. Youve got to find your match and Ive definitely done that. We talk about it and funnily enough they, it would be wrong to say that they laugh about it, but they found some aspects of it quite fascinating. There was no brutality about it at all. There were elements of my crisis that were entirely self-inflicted. And I have some views on what works and what doesnt work in prison, having been inside one for a while, though I do not claim to be an expert by any means, given the length of time I was there. I felt it was a bit on the steep side but it was within the parameters, so its up to the judge, the sentencing in technical terms. Jane: So, you pitch up at Category A prison HMP Belmarsh. I think Ive been up and down that mountain and that I think is a good and useful thing for my clients. I say that because I have been so completely blown away by the support and friendship that Ive had from people who, frankly, owed me nothing. Andy: I do, yeah. And then before you know it, I live a way away from London, finally we got in and I had a final meeting with my lawyers. I made my case but I obviously didnt succeed with the jury. I wasnt released on good behaviour, thats the system. Six former members of staff from the now defunct. And I thought to myself, Serco are rubbish at security but absolute bloody masters of irony. Its an audit, right, when these things happen in your life. View the profiles of professionals named "Andy Coulson" on LinkedIn. In David Cameron: The Conservative-Liberal Democratic coalition government Andy Coulson, Cameron's communications chief, had already left that post in January of the same year in the wake of the growing evidence tying him to the scandal. He was scheduled to stand trial in April 2015 but the trial was postponed to 11 May 2015 because of the general election. And there was a bit of joshing as well, particularly with prison officers when I would kind of complain about the process or I would ask the question, Why am I still here when I think I should have been categorised by now? and Id get a wry look that says, Well Tory cuts, Andy.' I mean, you've probably faced a few challenges in your life but an eight-month trial at the Old Bailey, followed by prison, is obviously another league. [23], In 2008 an employment tribunal upheld a claim of bullying by Coulson whilst he was at the News of The World. Prosecutor Andrew Edis QC. They take your clothes when you go to prison, which I think is sensible. So thats why were doing this. Did you ever feel scared? Big Brother 15 winner Andy Herren has never been shy about sharing his opinion on social media. Jane: So you just sort of top up when you need it? And its going to be Groundhog Day and actually the consequences of that trial could be even worse in Scotland and then a whole load of politics attached to that and theres a whole load of new agendas. We worked together for a long time. He hired Dominic Mohan, who was later promoted to editor. "Due to the unique nature of our shoreline, we have designed and constructed our own barges and tugs to accommodate services in landscaping, septic systems, demolition, and excavation,"says Arnie. And the Old Bailey is a court that is straight out of central casting. The two others, well one of them got dropped and one I was acquitted, but thats the system. Does that tail occasionally whip round and hit you? Nobody put a gun to my head and told me to do those jobs. The Pickwick Papers, I think, I would probably choose as the favourite. And then I noticed that the windows of the Serco van that I was in were rose-tinted. But first and foremost it was a professional relationship and thats exactly what I wanted it to be and he wanted it to be. Coulson Partners offer strategic advice that moves the dial. Coulson is pictured leaving the court earlier. That must have felt weird, being the focus of the media storm? [42] Coulson has denied these latest claims. When I was in the midst of all this I was encouraged by Eloise and friends to go and talk to someone and I did that. And I made mistakes in my personal life as well, and so Ive never at any point felt why me? about it because thats just not how I feel. I wanted them to visit me in an open prison. And that was corrosive. I thought that was pretty unusual and unfair, but it happened so I had to deal with it. I was an ex-Murdoch employee in government and a lot of people really didnt like that and saw a lot of conspiracies within that, that I was some kind of stooge, which I absolutely was not. Was there ever a point through all of this, the trial or prison or any of it, that you cried? Andy: I have, yeah, and weve had that discussion. [50], Coulson was arrested at Scotland Yard at 10:30am on 8 July 2011. Andy: It was boiling hot and it was a glorious summer, as I said. It was that sort of combination of mind-numbing boredom, an awful lot of frustration because I was told that I would be in Belmarsh for a couple of days and then Id be categorised, given the nature of my conviction, be categorised as a D-Cat pretty swiftly, and then Id be off to an open prison. Thats basically where you spend yourself emotionally as an editor, in between those two things. Andy: Dangers of drug smuggling and all manner of other suggested uses for books. Jane: So, there came a point where you thought, OK, I dont know how long Im going to be here. Find Andy Coulson's phone number, address, and email on Spokeo, the leading online directory for contact information. Andy: Oh, quite a lot. The judge hearing Coulson's trial was critical of the prime minister, pondering whether the intervention was out of ignorance or deliberate, and demanded an explanation. And that is not a good moment. Jane: Because it had been quite a high-profile trial. Andy, hello. I found myself, very quickly, saying things in my own head that I had been saying to members of the cabinet not that long before, albeit them facing different crises, the principles were the same. Jane: So, when you talk to other people you intro it with crisis stories worth sharing. Former News of the World editors Rebekah Brooks and Andy Coulson were having an affair for at least six years from the late 1990s, the phone-hacking trial has heard. Actually, in the conversation with Chris Lewis we were discussing this. Were going to put you to work. If thats how he feels, thats how he feels. I think thats been an enormous help. 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