WHAT started as a standing joke, of a kind that might be shared be any married couple, has turned into a nightmare for Pauline Turner.

After 38 years of sharing her life with husband John, a retired chemical worker, he suddenly accused her of making his life a misery.

And the reason he claimed he could no longer live with her was not that she nagged him or spent his cash, but that she rearranged their home on a daily basis.

The 61-year-old said it drove him so mad that, for the past five years, it had been "impossible for him to relax and enjoy his home life".

But last night a devastated Mrs Turner, 60, said that while she did like to move things, her husband was just as likely to ring the changes.

The bakery worker, who is off work sick due to the stress surrounding the split, said: "He used to say to me: 'What's on the agenda today? What are we moving?' John liked to decorate, so perhaps he liked the house a certain way. It was just a joke between us."

Speaking from her spotless mobile home, at Elton, near Stockton, Mrs Turner described how many factors might prompt her to move items in the home - strong sunlight or a need to vacuum.

Whatever the motive, she considers her behaviour perfectly normal for a houseproud wife. She certainly did not expect it to lead to divorce.

Mrs Turner said the first hint that her 38-year marriage was failing came last November, when she began to suspect her husband was having an affair.

She said: "I saw the signs. I confronted him but he said I was paranoid."

Three months later, Mr Turner, who has not worked for the past 11 years due to illness, decided to leave his wife. He later admitted committing adultery.

"He took me to work at 6am and I got a phone call at 10am saying that he was going a long, long way away," she said. "I never heard anything for five weeks, then I got a letter from a solicitor asking could we settle this amicably?"

A further shock came when, after she failed to reply, she received another letter accusing her of asking Mr Turner to move at least one item of furniture a day despite his back injury.

She said she couldn't believe he considered this grounds for divorce.

"I didn't think it would go to court because I thought it was ridiculous. He couldn't get me for anything else over 40 years.