Police probe as comic Lee Hurst smashes punter's mobile phone

Comedian Lee Hurst is facing a police investigation over a 'stage rage' outburst in which he smashed someone's mobile phone.

The audience of 300 was left without a headline act as the star stormed off stage and refused to come back.

Hurst, 46, is believed to have lost his temper because he thought the phone was being used to film his show.

The phone's owner apparently claimed to have been sending a text message to a babysitter who was looking after his children.

Others in the £9-a-ticket pub audience in Guildford, Surrey, said the comedian exploded in a four-letter outburst, then seized the phone and dashed it to the floor.

One said: 'Lee went ballistic, grabbed someone's phone and accused them of filming.

'He smashed it into tiny pieces and hurled obscenities before storming off stage, leaving 300 people staring at a microphone.'

Police are today deciding whether to bring charges against Hurst, a former team captain on TV sports quiz They Think It's All Over.

A police spokesman said: ‘Surrey Police can confirm that an incident took place during a comedy night at the Stoke pub, Stoke Road, Guildford, at about 10.45pm on Wednesday night, in which it was reported that damage was done to a mobile phone.

‘Officers are currently investigating and are in the process of interviewing both parties to achieve a satisfactory conclusion.’

Neither Hurst nor his agent would comment.

The mobile phone outburst by Hurst, who currently appears in Channel Five's new show The What in the World Quiz, is not the first in the live entertainment world.

Film star Ralph Fiennes told a woman in the front row at a London show to 'turn that f****** thing off' as she left her phone to ring in her back.

Comedian Richard Herring not only smashed an audience member's mobile but capped it all by refusing to pay for the damage with the sarcastic words: 'I'm not giving you £70 for that. It's broken.'