'Good Life' couple brought misery to neighbours

A couple whose lives were ruined by rampaging animals belonging to the "Good Life" couple next door today won a £65,000 damages payout.

Douglas and Brenda Bryant were subjected to a campaign of intimidation and abuse from their neighbours, whose livestock - dozens of geese, cows, horses, goats and sheep - ran amok. The animals destroyed poplar trees that formed the boundary between the Bryants' home and that of Frank and Mandy Macklin.

Today, Mr Bryant, a 56-year-old engineer, said he and his wife had suffered a living hell. The Court of Appeal heard:

The Bryants moved into their home in Perry Hill, near Rochester, Kent, in 1991. But their lives were made a misery when the Macklins bought a neighbouring plot of land about four years ago.

Lord Justice Chadwick today increased an earlier award, accusing the Macklins of "high-handed conduct".