Paul Lang has been convicted of harassment after calling his wife a slapper and sending 'nasty' messages

A husband who called his wife a 'slapper' when she started an affair with her boss has been convicted of harassment.

Paul Lang from Plumstead, south-east London, sent a series of texts to family, friends and one of his wife Lorna's work colleagues, saying her lover was 'old enough to be her granddad'.

But he was desperate to 'give his side of the story' and never threatened her, said his lawyer, Leigh Webber.

After a relationship lasting 22 years and 13 years of marriage, Mr Webber said Lang was understandably 'both upset and angry at the discovery'.

But Bromley magistrates ruled the 40-year-old had gone over the top and convicted him of harassment in August.

They accepted that Lorna Lang had been 'frightened' by the texts and deeply distressed at being called a slapper.

The couple had split by October 2015 but Mr Lang fired off the texts over three days in August 2016 after learning of his wife's office relationship.

Challenging the conviction at the High Court, Mr Webber said: 'He did not always use polite or neutral language, and even insulted her, referring to her as a slapper.'

But he added: 'The focus of this appeal is the extent to which one can express oneself in a highly emotionally charged situation.'

He argued that although some of the texts were 'objectionable', Mr Lang had 'not crossed the line' into criminal behaviour.

At one point, he messaged his estranged wife directly, telling her she 'had no shame' and 'made him feel sick'.

And the final text, in which he branded his wife a slapper, was sent to one of her female colleagues.

Mr Webber said the texts were Mr Lang's reaction to 'the discovery that a spouse of 20 years has been having an affair and that the marriage is over'.

The messages were not a 'barrage', did not threaten or intimidate, and were part of Mr Lang's understandable emotional response, he argued.

'This behaviour is so firmly within the normal private sphere that, regardless of the discomfiting effect it may have had, it does not warrant the intervention of the court to impose criminal conviction and punishment,' Mr Webber added.

The High Court found magistrates were correct to convict Lang of harassment after he sent messages to his wife, her family and work colleagues

The magistrates, however, accepted Mrs Lang's evidence that she had been left 'scared' and 'frightened' by the texts.

'Lorna Lang had formed a new relationsip and Mr Lang did not react well to this,' they found.

The texts had not been 'sent in a moment of madness or drunkenness' and Mr Lang had no intention to put his wife in fear of violence.

But the found some of the texts were 'nasty' and said describing her as a 'slapper' to someone she worked with would have been 'very distressing'.

Convicting him, the magistrates ruled: 'Mr Lang had made a deliberate attempt to undermine Lorna Lang in her relationship with family, friends and workmates.

'He wanted to cause her embarrassment, alarm and distress and indeed had done so. We found that his behaviour was both oppressive and unreasonable.'

Mr Lang was handed an 18-month community sentence.

Ruling on his appeal, Lord Justice Treacy said: 'Some might think this conduct fell short of criminality.'

But the magistrates were entitled to find him guilty of 'a course of conduct which amounted to harassment', he added.

They had applied the law correctly, their findings were 'not unreasonable' and the judge concluded: 'This appeal must fail.'