A MAN who smashed a toilet to smithereens in a Cotswold pub has claimed he was acting “in self-defence”.

The 32-year-old from Kempsford may be feeling a bit flushed after he was told he would appear in court accused of destroying a loo in the Bull in Fairford on January 9.

He claims he acted in self-defence as he was about to be attacked and smashed the toilet to attract the attention of other pub patrons.

Officers charged the man on February 6 and he will appear at Cheltenham Magistrates on February 24.