Lord Black of Crossharbour was today sentenced to six and a half years in jail and given a $125,000 fine for fraud and obstruction of justice.

The former Telegraph chairman was found guilty in July for colluding with other Hollinger International executives to cheat shareholders out of $6.1 million (£2.98 million).

He will be forced to trade his luxurious life quaffing fine French wine on the terrace of his Palm Beach estate for a dormitory and $17-a-month job in an American jail.

The sentence was announced at a Chicago court today after prosecutors demanded an effective life-term of 24-30 years for the 63-year-old convicted fraudster because he has shown no sign of remorse during or after his trial. Black has continued to deny any wrongdoing, and claims the case against him was "rubbish" and a "vendetta".

David Radler, a former colleague, chose a less fractious approach and will face a lesser sentence after testifying against Black in court.

Judge Amy St Eve told the court today that that Black should not be treated as the leader or organiser of the fraud.

She said his former co-defendant Radler was “just as culpable”.

“The evidence demonstrated that his co-defendant Radler was calling as many shots and directing where the money was going,” she said.

Black was today told that he would be sentenced to 78 months in prison.

"He is in for a tough time," said Herb Hoelter, a sentencing consultant at the National Centre on Institutions and Alternatives, who advised jailed Sotheby's chairman Alfred Taubman and financiers Michael Milken and Ivan Boesky.

"One aspect is psychological. You were the CEO and now you are taking orders from a corrections officer who, but for the prison, would be a dairy farmer. It's an extreme adjustment," Mr Hoelter said. "It's a very difficult adjustment for family members as well because telephone calls are limited."

Lord Black, once the jet-setting chief of the world's third-largest newspaper empire, has been free on $21 million bail since his conviction in July on three counts of fraud and on charge of obstruction of justice.

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