Actor Stephen Tompkinson has said he is 'eating again' as he spoke for the first time about being cleared of inflicting grievous bodily harm on a man he confronted for drunkenly making noise outside his house.
The DCI Banks star was accused of punching Karl Poole in the head after finding him and a friend drinking at the bottom of his driveway in the early hours of May 30 2021. Mr Poole fell to the ground and broke his skull when his head hit the pavement, Newcastle Crown Court was told.
Prosecutors claimed Tompkinson "snapped" and "lashed out" at Mr Poole in "disgust" at his behaviour. But Tompkinson told jurors he only pushed Mr Poole away in self-defence and the contact "wasn’t enough to knock a sober man off his feet".
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On May 11, a jury found him not guilty of causing grievous bodily harm after deliberating for just under two hours. Tompkinson nodded but showed no visible emotion when the verdict was announced, while a disappointed sigh could be heard from the public gallery, where Mr Poole was sitting.
He has now appeared on ITV's Lorraine where he spoke to host Lorraine Kelly about his ordeal. After detailing events, Tompkinson said he felt the incident could have been "investigated a lot sooner and dealt with there and then rather than wait two years".
Lorraine remarked: "Absolutely horrible, it’s so stressful and it has an impact, obviously, things going forward, workwise and it’s difficult with relationships." Tompkinson replied: "Sure," he replied before praising his "fantastic" partner Jess and revealing she was dealt a double horrific tragedy at the same time.
He explained how Jess' parents were sitting in stationary traffic when a lorry who, it was later discovered, was "sexting on his phone on an adult dating hookup site", didn't see the traffic had stopped "ploughed into them at 56 miles an hour killing them instantly and the driver in front".
Now back at work, the actor agreed that he wants to put it all behind him and 'get back to work' as he prepared to take the stage in the play Stumped before appearing in new drama The Long Shadow.
Later in the interview, when Lorraine said: "You're back and you've put all of this behind you and I have to say you're looking a lot better because I was a wee bit worried about you," Tompkinson replied: "Yes, well I am eating again, which is good."
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