A furious gran has been spared jail for attacking her husband of 50 years with a meat hammer after catching him watching pornography.

Lynda Holmes, 70, repeatedly bashed 78-year-old Gordon Holmes over the head at their Lancashire home after she thought he was trying to destroying the material.

Burnley Crown Court heard how Mr Holmes ran out into the street bleeding and told neighbours his wife had gone ‘mad’.

When police asked Mrs Holmes what happened she said: “I caught him with porn. He tried to get rid of it. I’ve seen red and attacked him. I wanted to kill him.

“It should be murder. I want 10 years of my life back. I saw red mist.

“He hasn’t touched me for over 10 years and now he’s watching porn. How dare he? How do I go about getting 10 years of my life back?”

Mr Holmes told police that he feels ‘partly responsible because of his selfishness’ by playing in a band, playing golf and ‘spending considerable time away from home and not supporting his wife’.

Grandmother-of-three Mrs Holmes pleaded guilty to inflicting grievous bodily harm at the couple's home on Hornby Street in Oswaldtwistle. She was given a 10 month jail sentence suspended for 18 months.

Stephen Parker, prosecuting, told the court how the attack happened on the morning of March 16 this year.

He told the court: “There had been a breakdown some considerable time ago in their sexual relationship that had led to tension between them and several days before this assault took place Mr Holmes had been caught by his wife watching some adult pornography.

“She clearly took issue with this and it preyed on her mind for a number of days and on March 16, when Mr Holmes was upstairs in the bedroom, his wife came into the room carrying a metal meat tenderiser and hit him several times to the head.”

The court heard how the attack continued until Mr Holmes ‘could get out into the street’ and he suffered injuries to his head, ear and right hand.

Mr Parker told the court how Mr Holmes told neighbours he didn’t want the police involved.

Rachel Woods, defending, said it was a ‘moment of madness’ and happened shortly before their golden wedding anniversary.

She told the court: “Although Mr Holmes was upstairs seemingly seeing to some unwanted paperwork, it seems Mrs Holmes suspected he was potentially destroying evidence of his behaviour.

“That’s what sparked off an offence which was totally out of character and no doubt came as a great shock and surprise to Mr Homes.

“They met when she was 15 years old and married five years later. They would have, had they been allowed contact since the offence, celebrated their golden wedding anniversary.

“She had clearly seen the red mist and just lost control of her own senses and behaviour for what was a relatively short period of time.”

Miss Woods told the court Mrs Holmes had been bailed to live with her son in Doncaster since the incident and said she is ‘thoroughly ashamed’.

She said: “Once the mist had cleared and she calmed down she would’ve been concerned for the welfare of her husband.

“The pair have had a hard working and modest life together.

“Sending her to prison would serve little purpose other than further punishment than has already been served by virtue of these proceedings.”

The court heard Mr Holmes did not support a prosecution against his wife but it was brought by the Crown Prosecution Service and ‘judged properly to be in the public interest’.

Judge Jonathan Gibson said Mrs Holmes had shown ‘considerable remorse’ and it was a ‘loss of control’.