This is the tiny cell where Oscar Wilde was jailed for two years after being found guilty of homosexuality, inspiring him to write his last published work The Ballad of Reading Gaol. In 1895, at the very height of his fame, the celebrated writer was sentenced to two years hard labour after a showcase trial which saw him charged with acts of of gross indecency. Following short stints in Pentonville and Wandsworth prisons he was moved to Reading Gaol, a sprawling prison built in 1844, then home to some of the country's most dangerous men. Grim: Cell 33, C Wing, Reading Prison, where the celebrated writer Oscar Wilde spent the majority of his two year sentence after being found guilty of gross indecency . For the sensitive, fun-loving Wilde, the prison experience was devastating and he left a broken man. Financially ruined and living in exile in exile in France, he penned his last published work The Ballad Of Reading Gaol. The prison closed as gaol in 1920 and was used as an internment site in both world wars, before being converted into a Borstal, a local prison and a Remand Centre and Young Offenders Institution. The Ministry of Justice has now closed its doors for ever, but this week a group of amateur photographers were allowed inside to . capture the empty cells before its final fate is decided on. The prison experience left Wilde a broken man. He went into exile in France where he wrote The Ballad of Reading Gaol. Pictured, right, is a lithograph of Reading Gaol, from around the time of its opening in 1844 . The 170 year old prison, in the centre of Reading, Berks, was closed last year. Its future has not yet been decided on . The photographs of the 170-year-old prison in the centre of Reading, Berks., give a small insight into what life behind bars was like for Wilde and other prisoners of his day. Warren Askew, a member of the Woodley Photographic Club, was a former prison officer at the jail and asked if he and his camera-loving friends could be allowed in. What they captured was a haunting snapshot of the empty cells, landings and common rooms. A look along one of the wings at Reading prison. Authorities allowed a group of a group of amateur photographers inside to capture the empty cells for posterity . Hard time: The photographs of the 170-year-old priso give a tiny insight into what life behind bars was like for Wilde . The club had to submit all . photographs for security reasons. A picture, right, of the condemned man cell, later used as an office, with a sign above the door saying 'Place of no return' It also showed how barbed wire and bars are still methods used to stop prisoners escaping. 'So many people drive past every day and have no idea what it looks like on the inside,' said Mr Askew. It was quite eerie in there. 'Like every place people are needed to make it come alive and with nobody there it felt very strange.' Three of the four wings were used in the final days as a Young Offenders’ Institute with prisoners still occupying Oscar Wilde’s cell. He was incarcerated the top floor in wing C number 33 between 1895 and 1897. The club had to submit all the photographs taken by the 24 members before certifying the ones they were allowed to use for security reasons. History: The prison closed as gaol in 1920 and was used as an internment site in both world wars, before being converted into a Borstal, a local prison and a Remand Centre and Young Offenders Institution . Three of the four wings were used in the final days as a Young Offenders' Institute with prisoners still occupying Oscar Wilde's cell . The photographers had to submit all the photographs taken by the 24 members before certifying the ones they were allowed to use for security reasons . The future use of the prison building or whether it will be demolished has not yet been decided. HM Prison Reading was designed by George Gilbert Scott and was considered 'state of the art' when built in 1844. Public executions took place at the prison between 1845 and 1913, drawing crowds of up to 10,000 people. The historic Reading Prison has a memorial to Oscar Wilde (pictured) The photographers captured a haunting snapshot of the empty cells, landings and common rooms . Oscar Wilde, jailed for two years for gross indecency with another man. The charges came from his unsuccessful libel action against The Marquess of Queensberry whose son, Lord Alfred Douglas, was Wilde’s lover. The Ballad of Reading Gaol was his last work and published in 1898. Other famous inmates include Hollywood star Stacey Keach who spent six months in Reading prison after being found with cocaine when he arrived at Heathrow airport in 1984. A portrait of Oscar Wilde . Famous for his razor sharp wit, flamboyant dress sense and enormously succesful plays, Oscar Wilde was one of the Victorian era's best known characters. The son of two Anglo-Irish intellectuals, Wilde studied at Oxford before moving to London where he mixed with the capital's most fashionable circles and began a career as a writer. He is perhaps best known for his play The Importance of Being Ernest, which was still being staged in London's West End when he was arrested on charges of sodomy and gross indecency. He wrote only one novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray published in 1891. In prison, he wrote De Profundis, a long letter discussing his trial and subsequent jail sentence. When Wilde was released he had undergone a transformation, and was no longer the pleasure seeking socialite.  He went into exile in France and died destitute in Paris at the age of forty-six. Today he is fondly remembered for his razor sharp wit and brilliant quotes. On arrival in the USA he is once said to have breezed through customs announcing: 'I have nothing to declare but my genius'. Other memorable quotes include: 'There are only two tragedies in life: one is not getting what one wants, and 'We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars'. Even on his deathbed he was said to have quipped: 'Either those curtains go, or I do'
Historic prison in the centre of Reading is finally closing after 170 years .
Photogarphers given last opportunity to take pictures inside the building .
Wilde was sentenced to two years hard labour after trial for gross indecency .
He spent the majority of his sentence in Reading before his release in 1897 .
He then went into exile in France where he wrote The Ballad of Reading Gaol .
Published under the name C.3.3., standing for cell block C, landing 3, cell 3 .
It was his last published work before he died destitute in Paris in 1900 .
This is the tiny cell where Oscar Wilde was jailed for two years after being found guilty of homosexuality, inspiring him to write his last published work The Ballad of Reading Gaol. In 1895, at the very height of his fame, the celebrated writer was sentenced to two years hard labour after a showcase trial which saw him charged with acts of of gross indecency. Following short stints in Pentonville and Wandsworth prisons he was moved to Reading Gaol, a sprawling prison built in 1844, then home to some of the country's most dangerous men. Grim: Cell 33, C Wing, Reading Prison, where the celebrated writer Oscar Wilde spent the majority of his two year sentence after being found guilty of gross indecency . For the sensitive, fun-loving Wilde, the prison experience was devastating and he left a broken man. Financially ruined and living in exile in exile in France, he penned his last published work The Ballad Of Reading Gaol. The prison closed as gaol in 1920 and was used as an internment site in both world wars, before being converted into a Borstal, a local prison and a Remand Centre and Young Offenders Institution. The Ministry of Justice has now closed its doors for ever, but this week a group of amateur photographers were allowed inside to . capture the empty cells before its final fate is decided on. The prison experience left Wilde a broken man. He went into exile in France where he wrote The Ballad of Reading Gaol. Pictured, right, is a lithograph of Reading Gaol, from around the time of its opening in 1844 . The 170 year old prison, in the centre of Reading, Berks, was closed last year. Its future has not yet been decided on . The photographs of the 170-year-old prison in the centre of Reading, Berks., give a small insight into what life behind bars was like for Wilde and other prisoners of his day. Warren Askew, a member of the Woodley Photographic Club, was a former prison officer at the jail and asked if he and his camera-loving friends could be allowed in. What they captured was a haunting snapshot of the empty cells, landings and common rooms. A look along one of the wings at Reading prison. Authorities allowed a group of a group of amateur photographers inside to capture the empty cells for posterity . Hard time: The photographs of the 170-year-old priso give a tiny insight into what life behind bars was like for Wilde . The club had to submit all . photographs for security reasons. A picture, right, of the condemned man cell, later used as an office, with a sign above the door saying 'Place of no return' It also showed how barbed wire and bars are still methods used to stop prisoners escaping. 'So many people drive past every day and have no idea what it looks like on the inside,' said Mr Askew. It was quite eerie in there. 'Like every place people are needed to make it come alive and with nobody there it felt very strange.' Three of the four wings were used in the final days as a Young Offenders’ Institute with prisoners still occupying Oscar Wilde’s cell. He was incarcerated the top floor in wing C number 33 between 1895 and 1897. The club had to submit all the photographs taken by the 24 members before certifying the ones they were allowed to use for security reasons. History: The prison closed as gaol in 1920 and was used as an internment site in both world wars, before being converted into a Borstal, a local prison and a Remand Centre and Young Offenders Institution . Three of the four wings were used in the final days as a Young Offenders' Institute with prisoners still occupying Oscar Wilde's cell . The photographers had to submit all the photographs taken by the 24 members before certifying the ones they were allowed to use for security reasons . The future use of the prison building or whether it will be demolished has not yet been decided. HM Prison Reading was designed by George Gilbert Scott and was considered 'state of the art' when built in 1844. Public executions took place at the prison between 1845 and 1913, drawing crowds of up to 10,000 people. The historic Reading Prison has a memorial to Oscar Wilde (pictured) The photographers captured a haunting snapshot of the empty cells, landings and common rooms . Oscar Wilde, jailed for two years for gross indecency with another man. The charges came from his unsuccessful libel action against The Marquess of Queensberry whose son, Lord Alfred Douglas, was Wilde’s lover. The Ballad of Reading Gaol was his last work and published in 1898. Other famous inmates include Hollywood star Stacey Keach who spent six months in Reading prison after being found with cocaine when he arrived at Heathrow airport in 1984. A portrait of Oscar Wilde . Famous for his razor sharp wit, flamboyant dress sense and enormously succesful plays, Oscar Wilde was one of the Victorian era's best known characters. The son of two Anglo-Irish intellectuals, Wilde studied at Oxford before moving to London where he mixed with the capital's most fashionable circles and began a career as a writer. He is perhaps best known for his play The Importance of Being Ernest, which was still being staged in London's West End when he was arrested on charges of sodomy and gross indecency. He wrote only one novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray published in 1891. In prison, he wrote De Profundis, a long letter discussing his trial and subsequent jail sentence. When Wilde was released he had undergone a transformation, and was no longer the pleasure seeking socialite.  He went into exile in France and died destitute in Paris at the age of forty-six. Today he is fondly remembered for his razor sharp wit and brilliant quotes. On arrival in the USA he is once said to have breezed through customs announcing: 'I have nothing to declare but my genius'. Other memorable quotes include: 'There are only two tragedies in life: one is not getting what one wants, and 'We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars'. Even on his deathbed he was said to have quipped: 'Either those curtains go, or I do'
This is the tiny cell where Oscar Wilde was jailed celebrated writer was sentenced to two years hard labour after a showcase trial which saw him celebrated writer Oscar Wilde spent the majority penned his last published work The Ballad Of France where he wrote The Ballad of Reading Gaol. 170 year old prison, in the centre of Reading, Wilde, jailed for two years for gross indecency socialite.  He went into exile in France and died destitute in Paris at the age of forty-six. Today