Image copyright Seven Network Australia

A British backpacker has spoken for the first time about being kidnapped and raped by a man in Australia.

Elisha Greer, 24, was held captive by Marcus Martin during a 1,000 mile road trip in 2017 - during which she was beaten and had a gun held to her head.

Ms Greer, originally from Liverpool, told Australia's Channel 7 he "seemed like a nice guy" when they had met at a party in Queensland two months earlier.

Martin, 24, pleaded guilty to rape and deprivation of liberty in October.

He is due to be sentenced on 28 May.

Ms Greer moved to Australia in 2015, aged 21. She told the Sunday Night programme she met Martin in Cairns in January 2017, and after swapping numbers, Martin moved into her hotel room.

He began asking her for money, and, according to Ms Greer, it was not long before he became abusive.

She said he bought a gun for "protection" and she was "forced to drive the car with the gun to my head" while he robbed a drug dealer.

After he had taken drugs, Martin hit, raped and choked Ms Greer until she passed out.

"He turned around and he just started to hit me, hit me, hit me," she said of one attack.

Ms Greer said Martin would "cuddle her" and be apologetic after the assaults - but his violent and controlling behaviour continued.

She said he threw her contraceptive away because "maybe he thought that he could control me more if I was with his child".

Eventually, Ms Greer said Martin was receiving threatening text messages and he became "determined to leave town before someone else found him".

Ms Greer went on to describe the 1,000-mile road trip, where Martin's abusive behaviour intensified.

In one incident she said her face turned purple after he shoved her onto the floor, between the car door and seats - breaking her nose.

"I think he scared himself sometimes because of how much damage he was doing, but then I think he also felt power," said Ms Greer.

She said she contemplated killing Martin so she could escape, but feared it would make matters worse, if her attempt failed.

During a stop she left a plea for help in a visitor's book - which was unanswered. Finally, after five days of driving the pair stopped for petrol at a service station.

Ms Greer, who was being forced to drive, said she left without paying - in the hope staff would call the police.

An attendant called the authorities and Ms Greer was rescued by police in Queensland after they stopped the 4x4 she was driving

Describing the injuries she suffered, Ms Greer said: "He broke my nose, split my eyebrow open, I had various amounts of bite marks all up and down my arms.

"I had bite marks on my face, he had stabbed me in the neck with the key, I had two black eyes, hand prints all over my body from bruises. So many bruises."

She was taken to hospital but said she only felt safe days later, when she saw her mum.

Martin, 24, of Cairns, pleaded guilty to three counts of rape and one count of deprivation of liberty in October 2018, and will be sentenced on May 28.