Man jailed after slashing friend's face with steak knife after listening to THE ARCHERS
A MAN who went berserk and slashed his friend's face with a steak knife while listening to The Archers has been jailed.
Jason Darby attacked his friend with a steak knife while listening to The Archers
Jason Darby had been drinking red wine as he listened to the gentle Radio 4 programme when he suddenly picked up the knife and attacked victim Paul Pecan.
The 45-year-old sliced Mr Pecan's face, stomach and hands and partially severed his ear on August 31 last year.
The 45-year-old has been jailed for eight years for the unprovoked attack
The victim, 63, collapsed but awoke soon afterwards. When he came to, he found Darby in the hallway of the house in Bournemouth, Dorset, but managed to push past him and escape.
He made his way to hospital where he received specialist surgery to his badly damaged hands.
He had visited his friend's house at 7pm to ask if he could stay following an impending evition. The pair then sat down to listen to the show.
The Archers is a radio drama that tells the stories of a rural community
Darby used a steak knife during the violent attack
Darby carried out the "vicious" attack while listening to the gentle BBC Radio 4 show
This was a vicious and unprovoked attack
Darby was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder but eventually pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of wounding with intent to cause grievously bodily harm.
Detective Constable Shanena Cornwell, of Bournemouth CID, said: "This was a vicious and unprovoked attack.
"The victim sustained defensive cuts to his hands as he tried to protect himself from Darby.
"I hope the sentence sends a very clear message that Dorset Police will not tolerate violent crime and anyone committing such offences will be arrested, charged and dealt with robustly by the courts."
The Archers Actors discuss Rob and Helen
The Archers is a beloved and long-running BBC radio drama telling the stories of a fictional rural community.
Piloting in 1950, 17,930 episodes of the show have been produced in the half-century since.
Initially focusing on simple, gentle storylines focusing on the quirks of countryside living, the show has made a recent move to more hard-hitting topics, including domestic violence.