A WEDDING reception ended in violence and the arrest of two guests after a third had a finger broken, a court heard yesterday.

Harrogate magistrates were told how Julie Eaton was set upon by her sister, Tracy Keys, 37, and Paul Sykes, 29, after he and Keys got engaged at a wedding reception in Knaresborough on October 16.

Keys and Sykes, who share a home in Frogmire Close, Knaresborough, North Yorkshire, pleaded guilty to common assault, and Sykes admitted a charge of causing actual bodily harm.

Michael Hammond, prosecuting, said an initial attack had been launched in the car park as the three left the reception.

Sykes bent Ms Eaton's left hand back, breaking her little finger, grabbed her around the neck and forced her against railings, where she passed out.

When she recovered, the two women rowed, before Keys attacked her sister, striking her on the head. After the pair were separated, Keys knocked her sister to the ground. Ms Eaton was taken home, but soon after, Sykes walked in her house and hit her four or five times, knocking her out.

Geoffrey Rogers, in mitigation, said that although there had been "bad blood" between the sisters, the reception had been a pleasant occasion.

Sykes was bailed until December 9 and warned he could face jail. Keys was fined £60 with £55 costs and told to pay £60 compensation.