A WINCHESTER barrister who stalked the mistress his wife described as the 'chavvy woman from Southampton' has been ordered to get psychiatric help.

Jonathan Simpson, 48, and property lawyer wife Katherine Simpson, 49, sent letters to the single mother's family claiming she had tried to get pregnant by him.

Mr Simpson was convicted after a trial heard how he sent her flowers while his wife was ringing to shout abuse down the phone repeatedly.

He was given a six month sentence suspended for 12 months with a year-long restraining order and has now also been handed a mental health treatment requirement at Southwark Crown Court.

Simpson, of Clifton Terrace, will have to appear before the Bar Standards Board, who are likely to finish his career as a barrister.

Judge Alistair McCreath told him: "Your life has been characterised from your birth onwards by relationships of extreme complexity.

"All of those features of your character operated to a considerable and very unhelpful degree.

"By doing what you did you have thrown away a career, one that you took pride in and one in which you were, I have no doubt, successful."

The judge also referred to the impact the letters had had on the victim and stressed the importance of the restraining order. She is entitled to peace of mind in knowing that she has the protection of the law. You must leave her alone."

The 18 month affair began after a chance meeting in Southampton's Apple Store which ended with Mr Simpson and the woman exchanging email addresses.

Two weeks later they went on their first date and kissed, signaling what Mr Simpson described as the "beginning of a slippery slope".

"All I said throughout the first tranche of the relationship with [the other woman] in so far as my relationship was concerned was that it was perfect but for the fact that I had lost the sexual relationship with my wife" he explained.

He sobbed as he added: "I never lost my love for Katie, I just couldn't make it happen in that department."

After a number of breaks the affair came to an end abruptly in Autumn 2014 but Mr Simpson continued to try to contact the woman.

This led to him being given a harassment notice and a restraining order after he tried to call her from a pay phone.

A letter sent from Mrs Simpson to the father of the woman's child in January 2015 claimed the mistress had "a lot to learn about affairs with married men and telling lies".

Mrs Simpson explicitly wrote that she wanted the woman to drop the restraining order and that she "stay out of Winchester".

The Simpsons, both of Clifton Terrace, Winchester, were each found guilty of a single count of stalking involving serious alarm or distress.

Mr Simpson was cleared of acting in breach of a restraining order.

He was handed a six month sentence suspended for 12 months as well as a year-long restraining order and a 12 month mental health treatment requirement.

His wife was also convicted of stalking and was previously given a 12 month restraining order and made subject of a curfew for a year which means she must stay at home between 10pm and 6.30am on weekdays and between 7pm and 6am on Saturdays and Sundays.