A WAR hero bravely tried to fight off a knife-wielding robber who broke into his home and demanded cash.

Former Army commando John Hawkins, 82, grabbed the robber's wrist and tried to disarm him but ended up with the blade pointing at his stomach.

The terrifying experience started with a knock at the door of the widower's house, in Rainham Close, Thorntree, at 9pm on Sunday.

Mr Hawkins answered to find a man asking for a woman called Jean.

He said: "This chap was perfectly respectable, then he turned into a madman, he was like a completely different person.

"He pushed his way in and started screaming that I had to find money, then he pulled out the knife and kept telling me I was going to get it.

"I grabbed his wrist and was twisting it to make him drop the 12-inch knife, but I was not strong enough and he finished up pointing it at my belly."

The attacker took his keys and his wallet, containing £30, before fleeing.

Mr Hawkins was a rearguard gunner during the Second World War, receiving a number of medals for bravery and helping to liberate towns in France.

Following the war, he became an Army commando.

Acting detective sergeant Colin Whitfield said: "Sixty years ago, he risked his life to fight for his country and now he has been attacked in his own home by a burglar armed with a knife."

The attacker is described as an Oriental man, aged about 26, with a local accent, dressed in a white anorak, dark, tracksuit bottoms and white trainers. Anyone with information is asked to call police on (01642) 303 126.