A TAXI driver told a court he was acting in self-defence when he hit out at a paramedic after an ambulance blocked his route on a one-way street.

Richard Heslop admitted at Teesside Crown Court that he punched the ambulance driver four times, but said it was only because he was attacked first.

The 27-year-old, who denies inflicting grievous bodily harm, told the jury Richard Hannan had been mocking him and had refused to reverse the ambulance so his vehicle could pass.

He told the court: "My belief at the time was that it was an emergency.

"I was taking the situation very seriously indeed. I remember Mr Hannan doing a two-handed shoulder shrug and he pulled a very childish expression.

"The way I saw it, I was doing my best in what I considered an emergency situation and he was mocking me."

Mr Heslop said he picked up a fare in Millgate, Richmond, North Yorkshire, when his way was blocked by heavy flooding, so drove the wrong way up the street and encountered the ambulance.

He told the jury that Mr Hannan had not given him enough room to reverse into a drive to allow him to pass during the incident, which took place at about 3am on January 8.

Mr Heslop said: "He was still pulling a funny face. I wanted him to move back. I went over there and I used strong language.

"Because I perceived it to be an emergency, it was probably the most stressful time of my life.

"I was trying to persuade him to move. I said to him: 'Is someone dying while you sit here being like this'.

"I have never met anyone who behaved like that, especially someone in an emergency vehicle."

Mr Heslop, of Temple Court, Richmond, said he leaned into the ambulance to grab the radio because the paramedics declined to give him their names.

He said Mr Hannan grabbed him and tried to twist back his fingers and wrist into a lock position.

He said: "I punched him so he would release my wrist. I thought he was trying to break it. I acted in self-defence."

The trial continues.