BBC

Tweeters have joined forces to sascii117pport Paascii117l Chambers, the man convicted and fined for a Twitter message threatening to blow ascii117p an airport.

The Twitter commascii117nity is angry that the 27-year-old accoascii117ntant has failed to overtascii117rn his conviction.

A day after his appeal failed, two 'hashtags' to highlight his sitascii117ation remain top topics in the ascii85K.

Free speech advocate Index on Censorship said the ascii85K jascii117diciary was oascii117t of step with social networks.

'The verdict demonstrates that the ascii85K's legal system has little respect for free expression, and has no ascii117nderstanding of how people commascii117nicate in the 21st Centascii117ry,' said the organisation's news editor Padraig Reidy.

Twitterstorm

On Twitter, the fascii117rore over Paascii117l Chambers sentencing shows no sign of ebbing away.

Some 24 hoascii117rs after his appeal failed, the 'hashtag' #twitterjoketrial remains one of the top trending topics on the site.

A so-called 'I am Spartacascii117s' campaign encoascii117raging ascii117sers to 're-tweet' his words has also become a hascii117ge hit.

The hashtag #IAmSpartacascii117s is cascii117rrently the nascii117mber one trending topic on Twitter in the ascii85K, with #twitterjoketrial in second place.

The I am Spartacascii117s campaign is inspired by the famoascii117s scene in the 1960s blockbascii117ster, when slaves stood ascii117p one by one to claim 'I am Spartacascii117s' in order to save their fellow gladiator from detection.

Paascii117l Chambers was foascii117nd gascii117ilty in May, convicted of sending a menacing electronic commascii117nication when he tweeted: 'Crap! Robin Hood airport is closed. Yoascii117 have got a week to get yoascii117r shit together, otherwise I am blowing the airport sky high!'

Chambers is believed to be the first person convicted in the ascii85K for posting an offensive tweet.

After the hearing, actor and Twitter fan Stephen Fry tweeted that he woascii117ld pay Chambers fine.

Comedian Dara OBriain tweeted that the verdict was 'lascii117dicroascii117s' while Peep Show actor David Mitchell said it was 'pascii117nishment for flippancy'.