Former England footballer Paul Gascoigne has been fined and made subject to a restraining order after he pleaded guilty to sending a series of abusive tweets, phone calls and messages to his ex-girlfriend.
The 48-year-old also pleaded guilty at Bournemouth Magistrates' Court to the common assault by beating of "paparazzi" photographer Steven Shepherd and damaging his glasses after spotting him "secretly" taking shots of him.
Gascoigne admitted harassing Amanda Thomas, his girlfriend of five years, during a two-week period in March following their split at the end of last year.
The couple met after Gascoigne moved to the Bournemouth area where he underwent rehab treatment for his alcoholism.
Gascoigne, who now lives in Poole, sent a number of foul-mouthed and threatening messages and Tweets accusing Miss Thomas of being a "slag" after she began a new relationship with Andrew Stone, another photographer who works with Mr Shepherd.
The defendant's solicitor, Gavin Harris, told the court that Gascoigne had felt harassed by the pair of photographers which had caused him to "crack" under the pressure.
District Judge Stephen Nicholls sentenced Gascoigne to a community order for 12 months with a 20-day rehabilitation activity requirement. He was issued with a restraining order for two years prohibiting him from contacting Miss Thomas or making comments or posting material about her on social media.
Judge Nicholls warned Gascoigne, who wore a dark suit and grey shirt with no tie, that if he breached the restraining order he could face up to five years in prison.
Gascoigne was also fined £100 for the harassment and ordered to pay £235 court costs and £1,000 compensation to Miss Thomas, £100 to Mr Shepherd, £200 for the broken glasses as well as a £60 victim surcharge.
Judge Nicholls told Gascoigne: "The harassment is aggravated by your use of Twitter, you were aware you have many followers on Twitter and as a result of the harassment it spread to many people. You wouldn't know how people would respond and gave no thought to how people would respond."
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