AN AUDACIOUS stunt at one of London's most iconic landmarks has landed an Oxford daredevil in a young offenders' institute.

Free climber George King-Thompson climbed The Shard in July this year, in breach of a High Court injunction. 

The 20-year-old scaled the 310-metre (1,017ft) building from the ground floor to near the top in 45 minutes, then went on national television to apologise for the disruption he caused.

His barrister claims he has now vowed to 'not climb another building in the UK'. 

READ AGAIN: Shard climber George King from Oxford apologises for stunt

London Bridge Station was briefly closed and King-Thompson later received a police caution, after he was spotted on the side of the skyscraper at about 5am on July 8.

Teighmore Limited, which owns The Shard, brought legal proceedings against him for breaching a High Court injunction enforced last year to deter trespassers. 

King-Thompson appeared at a hearing in London on Monday to admit being in contempt of court.

Imposing an immediate custodial sentence, Mr Justice Murray said King-Thompson's breach of the order was 'deliberate and knowing' and that 'he would have walked past at least 10 copies' of the order during his climb.

Sentencing King-Thompson to six months in a young offenders' institution, he said that 'despite his young age and previous good character, it is not a sentence I am able to suspend.'

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King-Thompson posted a video of the climb on his YouTube page. 

In the description, he wrote: "I was 13 and on a school trip when I first laid eyes on The Shard. I felt an immediate passion to climb it - the same type of passion I want to the world to feel.

"In the past I’ve been called a daredevil, an adrenaline junkie, a reckless teenager and much more.

"I’ve always found that these names come from those who are ignorant or misunderstood about what I really do and why.

"It takes years of training and careful preparation to be where I am today, and this practice is achievable only because I see myself as someone who has followed a respectable passion, albeit an unusual one."

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King-Thompson, wearing a blue tie, white shirt and red shirt, showed no emotion as he was handcuffed and led away to the cells of the Royal Courts of Justice.

David Forsdick QC, representing Teighmore, earlier told the court that King-Thompson had spent around eight months planning his climb, had moved to east London 'specifically to prepare' and visited The Shard up to 200 times, sometimes wearing disguises.

Mr Forsdick claimed King-Thompson 'knew of The Shard injunction' and 'consciously and deliberately did what he knew was a breach of it.'

He said King-Thompson even used the hashtag #rooftopillegal when posting a video of the climb on Instagram.

He added that the climb was a 'highly dangerous trespass, both to him and potentially to members of the emergency services and the public if he had fallen.'

Philip McGhee, defending King-Thompson, told the court: "He wishes to make an unreserved apology for his actions, and that is an apology to the court first and foremost."

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He added that King-Thompson also wished to repeat his earlier apology to any commuters who might have been 'inconvenienced' by London Bridge Station being closed, and to the police and ambulance crews in attendance.

He said King-Thompson has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and, while 'meticulously preparing and planning' the climb, he developed 'almost an obsessive focus on the detail.'

Mr McGhee said his client is 'not in this for fame or notoriety' and that he had 'laudable aims' to inspire others.

Mr McGhee concluded: "Mr King-Thompson will not climb another building in the UK. He very much regrets and is very sorry for doing what he did in July."

Oxford Mail readers have criticised King-Thompson's antics in previous articles about his stunts.

Responding to an article last year, one reader said: "There is always one person who will think 'oh, I'll have a go at that' and often it ends in disaster."

Another added: "He is not just putting himself in danger but all the emergency services who will have to risk their own lives if [he] gets injured/trapped up there."