HORRIFIED bus passengers were forced to watch as a man unleashed a frenzied attack on his partner - leaving her covered in so much blood she feared she had been stabbed.

Young children were among those who witnessed the terrifying attack in which Amanda Rogers was punched up to ten times in a matter of seconds.

Southampton Crown Court heard how two good Samaritans stepped in to try and help the woman as she tried to protect herself from the flurry of blows but Christopher Clarke then turned on them too, knocking them to the floor.

The drama happened on the 18 service which Clarke and his girlfriend had boarded in the city centre to take them to Thornhill.

Daily Echo:

Christopher Clarke

During the journey, 24-year-old Clarke was being "boisterous" and had told Ms Rogers to shut up or he would slap her.

In Northam, he decided to get off the bus and she feigned as though she would follow, but stopped.

Prosecutor Darren Bartlett told how Clarke began shouting at her to leave but she stayed on, hoping the driver would shut the door and drive off.

But he didn't and Clarke got back on.Mr Bartlett told the court: "The next thing she remembers was being covered in blood, crouching down to protect her face as he delivered a flurry of blows.

"She was so concerned by the amount of blood that she feared she had been stabbed.

β€œHer right eye began to swell and she suffered a cut above the eyebrow which later required six stitches.”

The court was told how passenger Sheila Bugden went to help Ms Rogers having witnessed the "multitude of punches thrown at her," which she estimated was up to ten blows in a matter of seconds.

She tapped Clarke on the shoulder but he turned round and punched her to the side of the face, the blow glancing off her cheekbone.

A second passenger, Tequila Jack Lawless, tried to pull Clarke away but he was punched three times to the chest and arm.

Police were called and Clarkehad fled and was hiding between the back of a car and a hedge in Anson Road.

A chase ensued, which involved jumping over walls and running down alleyways before he was arrested.

Clarke, 34, of Hightown Towers, Southampton, admitted causing actual bodily harm to Ms Rogers and assaulting the two passengers.

He also pleaded guilty to two charges of failing to comply with a notification order by not giving police details about himself and where he was living.He had been required to do so after being released from prison for a sex offence.

Clarke, who was jailed for 30 months, first appeared in court in 1996 for robbery and he had other convictions for affray, actual bodily harm and illegally possessing a knife.

Passing sentence, Judge Gary Burrell QC told him: "I suspect you lost your temper when she stayed on the bus and you had got off it. It was a sustained and unprovoked attack, using your fists as weapons and causing a significant injury.”