A TEENAGER armed himself with a "fearsome" meat cleaver after being turned away from a nightclub, a court heard yesterday.

Luke Lancaster followed a doorman and friends to a nearby McDonald's restaurant where he made menacing throat-slashing threats.

Lancaster tapped on a window of the all-night burger bar with the weapon, and gestured a slicing action to those inside.

Teesside Crown Court heard they alerted staff, the police were called and Lancaster was arrested after throwing away the knife.

The 4.45am altercation happened after the 19-year-old scaffolder was refused entry at two Middlesbrough town centre bars.

Prosecutor Sue Jacobs told the court that the intended victims were shocked and afraid Lancaster would carry out the threat.

In a statement, the doorman's girlfriend said she is considering giving up her bar job, and worries about her partner's safety.

The other friend said in his impact statement: "I'm angry he could react in that way only for being refused entry to a pub."

Judge Peter Bowers told Lancaster, a self-confessed binge-drinker: "The idea of getting this fearsome weapon is quite disgraceful.

"Whatever you feel about door staff, they have a very difficult and important job to do trying to keep the peace in towns."

Sean Grainger, mitigating, told the court that the teenager's law-abiding family are "absolutely distraught" by his behaviour.

He said: "He did not have any intention of crossing the threshold into McDonald's. It was just a spur of the moment, stupid act."

Lancaster, of Grimston Walk, Berwick Hills, Middlesbrough, admitted possessing a bladed article in the early hours of August 3.

He was given an eight-month prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, with supervision and 120 hours unpaid community work.

Judge Bowers also imposed a 10pm to 5am electronic-tag curfew until the end of January.