A WOMAN who claimed Simon Cowell backed her fight to stop the repossession of her animal sanctuary home has had her latest legal attack thrown out by a top judge.

Paula Campbell - who earlier this year barricaded herself inside the farmhouse for six days - was thousands of pounds in mortgage arrears for Rainbow Ark Animal Sanctuary in Willington, County Durham.

Yesterday a judge at London's High Court dismissed her claim that the repossession was void due to the fact the mortgage had been initially been "procured by fraud" therefore invalidating it.

The 47-year-old also failed in a claim that lender Redstone Mortgages Ltd should pay damages for failing to give her sufficient chance to collect her "chattels" before disposing of them.

She told judges she had appeared on The X Factor and had the support of such celebrities as Simon Cowell in her campaign to keep Milkup Bank Farm after falling behind on the £500,000 loan.

When, in January, Redstone was finally allowed to seize the farm - which was home to some 400 animals - they were greeted by angry protestors, including Miss Cambell's daughter dressed in a chicken suit, and the sanctuary owner herself collapsed in the mud, said Judge Andrew Sutcliffe QC.

He said he accepted evidence that she and her supporters obstructed bailiffs by blocking the entrance with a van.

In March she and her son used furniture to barricade themselves inside the farmhouse for six days after being granted limited access to collect belongings.

After hearing her evidence, Judge Sutcliffe said: "I did not find Miss Campbell a convincing witness. She was intent on setting her agenda and was not a witness on whose evidence I could rely".

He dismissed her claim over the mortgage's validity as "hopeless" and added: "Miss Campbell had more than sufficient notice of Redstone's intention to remove and dispose of the goods on the property. It was entirely due to her own deliberate actions."

Judge Sutcliffe said the tortuous saga began when she remortgaged the farm in August, 2006, and fell behind on the half-a-million loan within 12 months.

Over the next seven years, she was in and out of arrears, but managed to fight several applications for the farm's seizure.

He said she was able, with supporters' help, to pay back sizeable chunks and agree repayment plans but would always fail to meet future payments.

In between a litany of possession hearings, Redstone was contacted in early 2009 by her supporters who said Miss Campbell had progressed to the X Factor live shows, the judge said.

And in a letter written in March, 2010 she told Redstone "three unnamed celebrities had offered to help the sanctuary" which would allow her top meet her obligations.

However, her payments stopped in 2013 and a warrant for Milkup Bank Farm's repossession by Redstone was granted.