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The Repair Shop star Jay Blades has had a charge of using his mobile phone behind the wheel dropped.
The BBC presenter, 54, appeared at Walsall Magistrates’ Court wearing a black suit on Tuesday, having earlier pleaded not guilty to allegedly using a handheld mobile device while driving his Land Rover in Millfields Way in Wombourne, Staffordshire, on 2 April.
In a two-minute hearing Blades, from Claverley near Wolverhampton, spoke to confirm his plea to the charge remained not guilty, before prosecutor Zulqarnain Saeed confirmed the Crown was offering no evidence.
He explained the police officer who was due to give evidence was “unavailable” and therefore the case would not proceed.
Magistrate Neil Ravenscroft told Blades, who stood at the back of the court with his hands clasped behind his back: “The matter will be dismissed and you are free to go.”
The 54-year-old replied, “thank you, sir,” before leaving the courtroom and was then pictured exiting the building in his signature flat cap.
The hearing comes days after Blades appeared in court facing separate proceedings. He is accused of controlling and coercive behaviour against his estranged wife, for which he will appear at Worcester Crown Court next month to enter a plea.
He appeared at Kidderminster Magistrates’ Court on Friday, with court documents showing that the alleged behaviour includes physical and emotional abuse of his former wife Lisa Zbozen.
West Mercia Police said it launched an investigation after being called on 3 May, the day after Ms Zbozen posted a message on Instagram saying their marriage had ended after 18 months.
Blades is the face of the popular The Repair Shop on the BBC, which involves people bringing in heirlooms to be restored.
In early May, filming on the new series of the show began without him as he said he was taking a break to “take stock” following the death of his uncle and as headlines surfaced over his split from Ms Zbozen, who he married in Barbados in 2022. In May, Blades also announced the couple had broken up in a post on Instagram to his 193,000 followers.
The furniture restorer began his life in Brent, North London, working as a labourer and in factories until he enrolled at Buckinghamshire New University as a mature student to study criminology.
He later set up a charity supporting disadvantaged young people in furniture restoration, based in High Wycombe, before moving to Wolverhampton to launch a social enterprise helping disengaged groups.
After filming a documentary programme for the BBC called Jay Blades: Learning to Read at 51, Blades found fame when he was named the presenter of The Repair Shop in 2017. In an interview with The Independent, Blades said securing the presenting gig had saved his life after an acute mental health crisis.
He also presented the BBC’s Money For Nothing until 2020, appeared on Celebrity Masterchef and Celebrity Bake Off as well as Comic Relief, and delved into the history of the West Midlands and the East End for two Channel 5 documentaries.
He has appeared with many well-known figures in television for one-off programmes, including with Dame Judi Dench for Dame Judi and Jay: The Odd Couple and Sir David Jason in David and Jay’s Touring Toolshed.
In 2021, he received a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to craft. In March 2023, he became Buckinghamshire New University’s first chancellor but has since resigned following his charge.
Last year, he won a daytime Bafta TV award along with other members of The Repair Shop for a special featuring the King, who was at the time the Prince of Wales.
He supported the King’s Foundation, formerly the Prince’s Foundation, as an ambassador and visited its Dumfries House location in Ayrshire for BBC special The Repair Shop: A Royal Visit. He has also resigned from his ambassador role since the news of his charge emerged.
