Ben Stokes trial - latest: Doorman says England cricketer mocked his tattoos and teeth before nightclub brawl
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Your support makes all the difference.The trial of England cricketer Ben Stokes resumed at Bristol Crown Court today.
The all-rounder, 27, is accused of attacking two men in a brawl outside of a local nightclub last September.
The court heard yesterday that Mr Stokes “lost control” in the affray and knocked Ryan Hale, 27, to the ground before knocking out Ryan Ali, 28.
Follow the latest on the trial in our liveblog below.
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Stephen Mooney, representing Ryan Ali, who the court heard was knocked unconscious by Stokes, asks Mr Cunningham whether Stokes and Mr Hales treated him with "respect and courtesy".
He replies: "No."
Mr Cunningham agrees with Mr Mooney's assertion they had demonstrated "obvious wealth" outside the nightclub.
Mr Mooney asks: "Having failed to bribe you to get in, did the resorting to foul and abusive language change your mind?"
The doorman replied that it did not.
Asked whether Stokes had clearly been drinking, he says: "Not excessively, no. He didn't seem drunk."
PC Danny Adams, from Avon and Somerset police, is now giving evidence again.
For those just catching up, here's what's going on - the court has been reviewing CCTV of the brawl outside the Bristol nightclub Mbargo.
Six people were involved: England cricketers Ben Stokes and Alex Hales, two gay men they had been interacting with outside the club when they were refused entry after 2am - Kai Barry and William O'Connor - and two men who the court earlier heard Stokes knocked out - Ryan Hale and Ryan Ali.
So there are two Ryans, as well as one Hale and one Hales - everyone having similar names is not especially helpful.
Prosecutors allege that trouble flared after cricketers Ben Stokes and Alex Hales caught up with Ryan Ali, Ryan Hale, William O'Connor and Kai Barry on a nearby street.
Stokes is accused of knocking out both Mr Hale and Mr Ali during the fracas.
Mr Ali allegedly threatened Stokes’ teammate Hales with a bottle, with Ryan Hale said to have retrieved a metal pole from a street sign and brought it to the scene.
Stokes claims he was acting in self-defence and took action after Mr Ali and Mr Hale were homophobic towards gay pair, Mr Barry and Mr O'Connor.
But Nicholas Corsellis, prosecuting, told jurors Stokes was instead acting with "revenge, retaliation or punishment in mind".
Eyewitness Max Wilson – a student who filmed the brawl from his window – is now giving evidence. According to The Mirror’s Adam Aspinal, Mr Wilson says he had no idea who the people involved in the brawl were. He thought they might have been freshers on a night out.
Mr Wilson tells the jury he heard a commotion from outside his bedroom window shortly after 2am and watched the scenes unfold for two or three minutes before he began filming it.
He describes the group of six men as "clearly drunk" and says they sounded like "football hooligans".
"Aggressive, and the reason I got my phone ready was that I thought there was a fight about to break out," he says. "Someone shoved another person."
The jury watches the footage and hears Mr Wilson say "f***" in response to what he can see going on outside.
The prosecutor asks why he reacted in that way, and Mr Wilson replies: "It was such a forceful punch. It just took me by surprise.
"I felt a little bit sorry about the lad that had been punched and it looked like he had his hands up."
The court session has ended for the day and will resume tomorrow at 10am.