Runaway Rolls-Royce crash was 'like bomb hitting house'

An elderly couple told of their shock today after a Rolls-Royce crashed into their front room as they watched television.

Michael and Sara Stanley, both 70, were in their £2million Notting Hill home when the Silver Spirit III smashed through the wall.

The couple rushed outside to find the 15-year-old car had reversed through wrought iron railings outside their property in Hillgate Street.

The driver said her foot had slipped off the brake pedal, causing her to lose control of the classic vehicle.

Mrs Stanley said she heard what sounded like an explosion and thought the house was under attack.

She said: "I was very shocked and, when we got up, there was what looked like smoke.

"I really thought it was a bomb. Something hit me on the head but no one was hurt."

Mr Stanley said: "It felt like an explosion. I was sitting 12 inches away from the wall with my back to the window. By the time I got outside the car was already parked."

The couple, who have lived in the house since 1976, had been watching the Seventies sitcom Rising Damp on video when the accident happened at 8.20pm yesterday.

A police spokesman said: "The driver was breathalysed and was under the legal limit."