Michael Barrymore awarded damages against Essex Police over wrongful arrest that 'destroyed' his career

Michael Barrymore will be awarded damages from Essex Police over his wrongful arrest, a High Court judge has ruled.

The entertainer said the arrest over the death of a man found dead at his home had destroyed his career.

He was arrested and detained in June 2007 on suspicion of the rape and murder of 31-year-old Stuart Lubbock, who was found in the swimming pool at Barrymore’s Roydon home six years earlier on 31 March 2001.

An inquest recorded an open verdict in 2002, where experts told the hearing that Lubbock had suffered severe internal injuries and may have been the victim of sexual assault.

In September 2002, ITV announced that it had “no plans” to commission any further shows from Barrymore, who had been one of TV’s highest-paid entertainers.

Except for an appearance on Celebrity Big Brother in 2006, Barrymore, whose real name is Michael Parker, remained largely absent from public life.

During the 2017 hearing, Essex Police admitted the arrest was unlawful, as the arresting officer did not have reasonable grounds to suspect that the TV presenter and comedian was guilty.

But, Essex Police argued that Barrymore could have been lawfully arrested by another officer, meaning that only an award of nominal damages should be made, rather than the “substantial” £2.4m sum sought by the star.

The judge ruled that there was “information available to the police that could have provided an arresting officer with reasonable grounds for a lawful arrest”.

But he added that “there was only one designated arresting officer who had sufficient information and had been sufficiently briefed to enable her to arrest Mr Parker lawfully”.

That officer was not present at the time of the unlawful arrest, said the judge, adding: “If Mr Parker had not been unlawfully arrested as and when he was, he would have been unlawfully arrested by one of a number of other police officers who were at the scene.”

Mr Justice Stuart-Smith said that arrest would also have been unlawful “because none of the police officers at the scene had sufficient information or had been sufficiently briefed to enable them to arrest Mr Parker lawfully”.

At a hearing earlier this year, Hugh Tomlinson QC said that Barrymore was never charged with any offence and the Crown Prosecution Service later made it “crystal clear” there was no basis for any charges.

He told the judge that Barrymore remained convinced that Mr Lubbock’s injuries were not caused at his home but he did not know what happened.

He added: “This arrest was made without any proper evidential foundation.

“However, the fact that it had happened, and the worldwide publicity it received, destroyed the claimant’s career.”

At the conclusion of Friday’s announcement of his decision, the judge adjourned an application by the force for permission to appeal, which is now likely to be heard in October.

Barrymore was not present for the decision.

Additional reporting by PA