| 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, I 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 has served far longer than the recommended 10 years, leading Education Secretary Michael Gove to argue that I "has 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. |
