BBC weatherman 'brandished imitation gun' at motorists, court hears

A BBC weatherman has appeared in court charged with brandishing an imitation shotgun in a high speed motorway road rage incident.

Desune Coleman, 45, is accused of driving alongside a car on the M1 before winding down his window and pointing a gun at the driver.

Coleman, a former actor who has appeared in EastEnders, denied two counts of possession of an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear or violence against fellow motorists Darren Hunter and Laura Coleman.

Dressed in a black suit and pin-striped shirt, he spoke only to confirm two not guilty pleas as he appeared in the dock for the brief hearing at Huntingdon Crown Court, Cambridgeshire.

Quinton Newcombe, prosecuting, told the court that Coleman also faced two charges of common assault but that he could only be arraigned on the first two charges.

He said: "We do not want him to be arraigned on the two other counts as there may be an application in due course for counts to be dismissed."

Judge Nicholas Philpot released Coleman, a father of four, on bail and scheduled a five day trial to begin on May 9.

The weatherman was arrested at his home in Swadlincote, Derbyshire, on November 18.

Mr Hunter and his partner Miss Coleman called police after a Mercedes CLS 300 drove past them on the M1 between junctions 15 and 14 at Newport Pagnell, in Buckinghamshire at 4.40pm on May 2 last year.

They said that the driver wound down his window and pointed a firearm at them.Coleman, who works for BBC East Midlands Today, became well-known to television audiences when he joined BBC1 soap EastEnders in 1996, playing nightclub barman and DJ Lenny Wallace.

His character had brief flings with several women and worked as a barman at the E20 nightclub with Steve Owen, played by Martin Kemp.

Coleman worked as a welder after leaving school aged 16 before joining the Guildford School of Acting in Surrey.

After leaving EastEnders in 1999 he had acting roles in shows including The Bill, Casualty and as a reporter on The One Show.

He has also appeared in West End musicals including Miss Saigon, Chicago, Simply Heavenly and Rent and understudied the lead in Trevor Nunn's musical opera Porgy and Bess.

He worked for BBC Radio Derby before becoming a £33,000 a year weatherman for BBC East Midlands Today in 2007. He also makes occasional local appearances, this month opening a local shop in Derby.

Coleman has also been treated for cancer after tumours were found on his neck and face and has been in remission since 2008.

(Published by Telegraph - February 17, 2011)