Bargain Hunt star Charles Hanson blamed assault allegations on wife’s mental health

Charles Hanson told police that his wife was a “fantasist” and an alleged headlock he put her in was actually a “loving” hug, a court heard on Wednesday.

The celebrity auctioneer also claimed his wife Rebecca “can’t cope with a raised voice” when he was arrested on suspicion of domestic assault in June 2023.

Prosecutors allege he carried out a ten-year campaign of abuse and coercive control against his partner.

Hanson denies charges of assault occasioning actual bodily harm, assault by beating and controlling or coercive behaviour between December 2015 and June 2023.

In police interviews that were read to Derby Crown Court, where the 46-year-old is standing trial, jurors heard that he flatly denied ever harming his wife, who is a hospital radiographer.

Hanson – who as well as Bargain Hunt has appeared on the BBC daytime shows Flog it! and Antiques Road Trip – said: “I have never physically assaulted, punched, kicked, grabbed or squeezed her.

“If I raised my voice she would say, ‘You’re threatening me’. She can’t cope with a raised voice.”

Hanson later said he thought his partner was “very jealous” of him and could “potentially ruin my career” – which he described as “frightening”.

Jurors have been told Hanson, who owns an auction house in Etwall, Derbyshire, first assaulted his wife during a row two years into their marriage, when she was pregnant with their son Tommy, who was later stillborn.

Giving evidence last week, she claimed he flew into a rage and held her in a headlock for four or five seconds, leaving her “paralysed” in terror.

But when he was quizzed about it by detectives, Hanson said he was simply giving his wife a “big hug”.

In the interview, which was read to the court by Stephen Kemp, prosecuting, he said: “I squeezed her in a loving way. It wasn’t forceful... It wasn’t aggressive, it wasn’t a grab, it was focused on being warm and lovely.”

Hanson added that his wife later accused him of “killing their son” as a result of the incident – an accusation he found “hurtful and really hard”.

He said: “She does have a tendency for these meltdowns. I think it is just crazy.

“Rebecca can be a fantasist. She can exaggerate things. ‘I think that is the case with this hug and everything else down the line.”

Hanson is alleged to have left his wife, 42, in fear following a series of alleged violent incidents in their home, which included getting her in a headlock when she was pregnant, grabbing her so hard he left finger marks on her arm, throwing a phone at her and threatening to burn her with embers from their log fire.

He also claimed during the interview that his wife was “very cold” – preferring to watch TikTok than talk to him.

“My wife has some serious issues mentally,” he told officers.

Hanson went on to accuse Rebecca of “bullying him”, saying: “Rebecca is so abusive. I think mentally she is not very well.”

Hanson also told officers: “I am a good guy. I am a bloody good guy. I love Rebecca to bits. We have some good times. I can’t believe it. Something in her brain has said that’s it and completely switched over.”

The trial continues.