Colin Wright took a tumble in the dock and had to be helped to his feet when he appeared before magistrates in Worcester

The 81-year-old of Colonel Drive, Rushwick, near Worcester, who walked with the aid of a stick, stumbled and fell on his back after he was told he was free to leave the court on bail.

He admitted possession of 21 indecent photos of children at category A between June 18 and July 20 last year.

Category A images are the most serious within the sentencing guidelines, showing penetrative acts involving children.

He further admitted possession of category B images and category C images between the same dates. All images were found on a Lenovo laptop.

He did not indicate a plea to a further charge of breaching a sexual harm prevention order between June 18 and July 20 last year by installing forensic wiping software.

He was prohibited from doing by the terms of that order, made at Worcester Crown Court on May 26, 2017.

Throughout the case Wright put his hand to his ear and at one stage said ‘I apologise, I can’t hear’, prompting court staff and the prosecutor to raise their voices.

Monuwara Begum, prosecuting, said the offences exceeded the sentencing powers of the magistrates court with possession of category A images alone attracting a custodial sentence of over a year with a range of up to three years available.