INNOCENT man Peter Fell today blasted the system which led to his conviction for double murder being overturned and said: "Without my friends, I would have been homeless."

Mr Fell, 39, was officially declared innocent yesterday by Court of Appeal judges of the murders of two women in Aldershot Common in May 1982.

But, speaking exclusively to the Lancashire Evening Telegraph, Mr Fell stormed: "I can now see why other people end up back in prison so quickly."

Mr Fell, who grew up in Great Harwood and attended Norden High School, Rishton, before joining the Army, had been freed from a 17-year prison sentence in December to prepare for his appeal hearing, which lasted for three days at the beginning of this month.

Three appeal court judges took less than five minutes to overturn the convictions against him after hearing that, at the times of the murders, Mr Fell was a fantasist whose confessions -- made after 13 phone calls to the police and seven interviews -- could not be trusted.

Evidence not presented at the time of the original court hearing, in Winchester in 1984, also proved he could not have been at the murder scene where Ann Lee, 44, and Margaret Johnson, 66, were found. Yesterday, the judges declared Mr Fell an innocent man, allowing him to look forward to his future for the first time in 18 years.

But he said: "I am very, very angry with the system. I have had absolutely no preparation for coming out of jail after 17 years.

"I am not joking when I say the world is a very different place now and I had no preparation for it. Once my conviction was overturned, I would not have been able to stay in a bail hostel.

"Had I not had the support of my friends and family, I would have been homeless for the last month in a world which is so different from the one I left.

"I can see why so many people return to jail so quickly, even if they have been proved innocent. What is the point in them leaving one bed for a park bench in the cold?"

In a highly unusual move, the appeal judges stressed that their decision to clear Peter Fell was not just because the jury's verdict was unsafe.

"We believe that he was innocent of these terrible murders and he should be entitled to have us say so," said Lord Justice Waller, sitting with Mr Justice Garland and Mr Justice Sachs.

Mr Fell, who discovered God while in prison, added: "Obviously, I am very happy to have my innocence proved but I will feel much better when I know action is being taken to help people who might find themselves in my position.

"Had I admitted I was guilty and was ready for release, I would have had all the help in the world to help me move back into the world.

"But because I was innocent, and kept saying it, I received no help. It is almost as if they resented me trying to prove I was innocent.

"I hope my case is taken as an example of the way things need to improve. No-one else should slip through the loophole I did."

Mr Fell is now planning to meet up with his brother Paul, who still lives in Great Harwood, and sister Julie who lives in Padiham.

He added: "For me, it is a case of taking one day at a time. The world is so changed, that is the best I can do."

Investigations are now taking place to see what compensation Mr Fell is entitled to, while Hampshire Police will now have to re-open the case.