Rock star Bryan Ferry's son Otis walks free from court

A judge agreed to grant the 26-year-old fox hunting fanatic bail on strict conditions including a £25,000 surety from his mother, former model Lucy Birley.

He must also stay out of his home county of Shropshire, live with his mother in Kensington, and report twice a week to the police.

As his freedom was being announced in court Ferry sat in the dock, his hand trembling.

Outside court, carrying his bag of belongings, he said: "I'm delighted to be out.

"The thing I was looking forward to most was seeing my hounds again but unfortunately that can't be because I'm now allowed to go to Shropshire.

"I shall have to make do with seeing my own two dogs, Indy my 14 year old lurcher and my Jack Russell terrier Tiny. Indy has been with me since I was at school and he's been through a lot being without me.

"I can't wait to see the outside world again. It is very hard to say how I feel about the whole prison thing - it has been a very strange experience, very moving.

"I have made a lot of friends in prison and I found lots of positives in the experience. People have very pre-meditated ideas about prison but it is very different to see it for yourself.

"I don't think anyting about prison is positive but I met a whole lot of people who I think will change the way I look at things.

"I have had over a year of having a court case hanging over me and even though I'm free now that hasn't changed. I'm just anxious to get the case out of the way so I can live normally again."

The announcement of Ferry's freedom was greeted with delight at Gloucester crown court by Mrs Birley, formerly Lucy Helmore, and Otis's girlfriend Francesa Nimmo, 22.

The two hugged each other tearfully in the corridor outside the courtroom.

Mrs Birley said: "Four months is a long time for him to be locked up. I'm delighted he's out and his brothers are really looking forward to seeing him."

Ferry, of Eaton Mascott, nr Shrewsbury, who is joint master of the South Shropshire Hunt, has been in custody since September 18th last year following his arrest on suspicion of trying to 'nobble' a witness against him in a robbery and assault trial.

Four previous bail applications had been turned down but today Judge Martin Picton agreed to release Ferry after being told that his trial, scheduled for 9th March, cannot go ahead on that date and may not be held until the Autumn.

The case has been delayed because four other people - including Ferry's girlfriend - have been arrested and bailed by police investigating an alleged conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.

The prosecution say more time is needed to consider whether any of those four are to be charged and tried jointly with Ferry.

The March 9th trial date was taken out of the court list by Judge Picton during today's hearing although he said the case must still be mentioned durng that week to see how it is progressing.

Today's renewed bail application from defence barrister Timothy Raggett QC was made behind closed doors but the judge then re-opened the court to the public to tell Ferry the terms of his bail.

Mr Barker had told the judge that the prosecution had hoped that by today they would have received important evidence from a mobile phone company about calls allegedly made.

He said he would give the judge more information about that but not in public.

Mr Raggett told the court that the defence argued there was now a change in circumstances in the case which allowed them to make a new bail application.

Ferry attended today's hearing wearing the familiar blue suit, green jumper and white open necked shirt which he has had on for all his recent appearances.

Setting bail conditions, the judge said he felt Ferry should surrender his passport. But Mr Raggett said Ferry believed the police had already seized it from him.

If not, it must have been stolen in a raid on Ferry's home shortly after he was remanded in custody last September, Mr Raggett said.

Ferry's mother then went into the witness box to give a £25,000 surety – a guarantee that if he fails to appear for his trial she will pay that amount to the court.

Asked by Mr Raggett if she had that amount to pay she joked: "If it doesn't all crash on the Stock Market."

The judge then announced: "I should say publicly that the position has now been reached in this case where the trial date which was fixed for March 9 cannot take place and in my view the trial is unlikely to be listed for months now.

"I suspect depending on how many people feature in the trial there is a realistic possibility that it won't be listed before the summer and maybe not until the Autumn.

"The stage has been reached in the context of the investigation and in the context of Mr Ferry now understanding the importance of the intregrity of the judicial process that his time in custody will have brought home to him that at this stage the position has been reached that the timing of the trial is so long off that he can be trusted with bail with stringent conditions."

He said the conditions are the £25,000 surety, reporting twice a week to police at Earls Court on Mondays and Thursdays, not to contact prosoecution witbnesses, and not to contact three named people - Adrian Simpson, Oliver Dale or John Deutsch.

He must reside at his mother's address, stay out of Shropshire and must not apply for or use any international travel documents for any purpose.

The judge warned Ferry "You must comply with all these conditions or you will lose your bail again."

Ferry has pleaded not guilty to doing acts intended to pervert the course of justice by telling his former groomsman David Hodgkiss not to give evidence against him on charges of robbery and assault at his trial at the crown court in Cirencester last September.

He also denies assaulting Hunt monitor Helen Ghalmi of a camera and assaulting her during a meeting of the Heythrop Hunt near Stow on the Wold in November 2007.

Ferry's girlfriend and the other three people arrested on suspicion of being part of a witness nobbling plot are all on police bail until January 28.