British singer Amy Winehouse today admitted assaulting a theatre manager at a Christmas pantomime.
The 26-year-old Grammy winner pleaded guilty to common assault and public order charges at Milton Keynes Magistrates' Court.
Winehouse hit 27-year-old theatre manager Richard Pound after disrupting a performance of Cinderella at the Milton Keynes Theatre in England on December 19th. The singer was arrested four days later.
Winehouse was given a two year conditional discharge and ordered to pay £85 (€97) in costs and £100 (€114) in compensation to Mr Pound.
"Mr Pound is a person whose job involves interaction with the public," district judge Peter Crabtree told Winehouse, who wore a short dark skirt, white shirt and her trademark beehive hairstyle.
"If he's assaulted he deserves the court's protection. In this case it's obvious that alcohol played its part."
Passing sentence, he added: "It may be harder than a fine because you have now got to stay on the straight and narrow for the next two years."
Winehouse's musical career has been overshadowed by a torrid personal life, which has made her a tabloid favourite, and regular brushes with the law.
Reuters