Gladiators presenter and Casualty star Barney Walsh has been banned from driving for six months after he was caught driving eight miles over the speed limitDaniel Bird Assistant Celebrity and Entertainment Editor
11:25, 08 Apr 2026Updated 12:13, 08 Apr 2026
Barney Walsh was caught speeding(Image: Getty Images)
Gladiators‘ Barney Walsh has been banned from driving. The presenter was caught behind the wheel of his 2023 black Mercedes-Benz SUV in South Gloucestershire last year at Junction 19, westbound.
He was caught driving at 58mph in a zone where a 50mph speed limit had been put in place. The actor, 28, exceeded a temporary speed restriction on a motorway, in contravention of a Local Traffic Order and was due to appear before magistrates for sentencing.
However, Barney didn’t attend the hearing as “work commitments” had “taken him out of England at the moment,” his lawyer, Gwyn Lewis, told the court. Mr Lewis, who had been instructed to by Barney to appear on his behalf, told the court that Mr Walsh had nine points, meaning a disqualification was “inevitable”.
Walsh was caught driving at 58mph in a 50 stretch of the M4(Image: Getty Images for the NTA’s)
He’s been slapped with a six month driving ban(Image: BBC PUBLIC SERVICE / ALISTAIR HEAP)
He told the court: “I’m not instructed to resist the disqualification and he has been told he is not to drive from last night.” Walsh previously pleaded guilty to one count of exceeding a temporary 50mph speed restriction on a motorway.
Chairwoman of the magistrates’ bench, Janis Sanders, banned Walsh from driving for six months. He was also ordered to pay a fixed penalty notice of £72, a surcharge of £28 and prosecution costs of £85.
Mr Lewis said Walsh is “in a position” to pay the fixed penalty notice within 28 days. This, however, isn’t the first time Barney’s driving has landed the Casualty star in trouble. The actor who plays Cam Mickelthwaite was previously reprimanded after being caught driving at 95mph on a stretch of the M4 in Swindon, Wiltshire, in March 2024.
The actor was spotted driving a 2023-plate Mercedes and was prepared to enter a guilty plea for driving “between 93mph and 95mph.” Lawyers for Barney disputed claims that he was driving at 97mph.
At the time, presiding magistrate Mark Baker branded the TV presenter as “arrogant” and hit out at him for not voluntarily appearing at his session in person. It is understood he was unable to attend due to filming commitments, and it had been approved by the court.
Baker said: “We find this a little bit arrogant that this plea is coming from a firm representing Mr Walsh when he was summoned to appear here. But he has not appeared and nor have his representatives. Other people today have made great efforts to get here from considerable distances, yet Mr Walsh seems to think that he does not need to appear.” The star had the option of pleading by post, which he accepted.
He added: “Some people seem to think they do not need to turn up, but if they are summonsed they are expected to.” Prosecutor Anna Hughes said Wiltshire Police saw the star’s Mercedes GLC 300 zoom past a manned camera on the M4 at 4.30 pm on March 6, 2024.
While officers believed Walsh was travelling at 97mph, his lawyers argued he was driving between 93mph and 95mph. While speeding offences similar to Barney’s previous, carry a fine of £2,5000, the magistrate reduced his to just £1,000, and he was also given five penalty points on his license.
This brought his total to eight points. Currently, in the UK, you can lose your license if you rack up 12 or more points within a three-year period. Walsh was also ordered to pay an extra £490 in court costs and had just 28 days to settle with the court.
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