A husband whose wife licked the face of a party host and grabbed his groin later floored him with a punch, a court heard.

Tipsy Jane Hill had pestered the victim at the Christmas party near Dartford before she kissed him on both cheeks and licked his face.

He objected and walked away but the 55-year-old mother later put her hand on his bottom and groped his groin.

She and her company boss husband of 20 years, Kevin Hill, 53, eventually left the party in December 2015, but after reaching their car he angrily returned to the house and asked the host: “Why did you have to ------- upset my wife?”

Hill then punched him once to the face knocking him to the ground - leaving him with injuries described by a judge as “horrendous”.

He returned to his car and drove away.

The victim, who cannot be identified, told in a statement of the anxiety he had since suffered.

“I am always on my guard not knowing if I will be assaulted out of the blue,” he said.

Hill, who works in the building industry, claimed he had returned to the house because his wife thought she had left her handbag behind.

"You have escaped a custodial sentence by the skin of your teeth" - Judge David Griffith-Jones told Kevin Hill

When the victim opened the door, he said, he decided to punch him in the face. He discovered the handbag was in the car.

Hill, of Shipwrights Avenue, Benfleet, Essex, admitted assault causing actual bodily harm.

Judge David Griffith-Jones QC said Hill was fortunate not to face a more serious charge.

But he avoided an immediate jail sentence. He was given 10 months suspended for two years with 100 hours unpaid work.

He will have to pay the victim £500 compensation and £500 prosecution costs.

His wife was originally charged with sexual assault but her guilty plea to battery was accepted.

She was given a conditional discharge for a year at an earlier hearing and ordered to pay £750 costs.

Monica Stevenson, defending, said photos of the victim’s injuries made “very unpleasant viewing” and it was unacceptable conduct.

“It was a loss of control which was almost certainly fuelled by the incident in the address before they left,” said Miss Stevenson.

“The conflict was between the victim and the defendant’s wife.”

Describing it as a “disgraceful incident”, the judge told Hill: “It’s a great shame you didn’t have the sense to proceed on your way home.

“His lip was split all the way through and required some seven stitches. He must have received exceptionally fine medical treatment as he is left with no obvious scarring.

“You should be thoroughly ashamed of your behaviour that night. There was significant premeditation. “

But he added: “While I take the view a prison sentence is demanded, in light of mitigation I am prepared to give you another chance.

"You have escaped a custodial sentence by the skin of your teeth.”

Hill will also be subject to a tagged curfew from 7.30pm to 4.30am for three months.