COMEDIAN Vic Reeves was told his remorse for driving over the limit probably saved him from being sent to jail.

The 46-year old star of BBC’s Shooting Stars appeared at Maidstone Magistrates Court on Thursday for sentencing following the Good Friday accident near his home in Boughton Malherbe. He was three times over the legal limit.

Angela Jouanneau, prosecuting, told the court how Reeves, appearing under his real name James Moir, lost control of his vintage Jaguar, hitting the back of a Peugeot 106, in which one of his neighbours was sitting. He did not realised he had hit the car until he was confronted at home.

She said Moir had failed to negotiate a nearside bend and careered off the carriageway hitting his neighbour’s car.

"He then proceeded up a bank and into some wire fencing. He drove off with some of the wire still entangled in the body work."

Keith Middleton, defending, said Moir had left for the Kings Head pub in Grafty Green shortly after 10pm to buy cigarettes and to show the landlord his recently bought car.

He had drunk several gin and tonics during the evening while working on scripts for a new radio show but had lost track of how much he had consumed during that time.

The court was told Moir knew he was over the limit when he got behind the wheel but had decided to take the risk. The accident was less than a quarter of a mile from his home.

A breath test at Maidstone Police station found Moir had 117 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath. The legal limit is 35mg.

Moir pleaded guilty to a charge of drink driving at an earlier hearing. He also admitted at Thursday’s hearing that he had failed to to stop after the accident.

Magistrates banned Moir from driving for 32 months and ordered him to do 100 hours of community service. He was also asked to pay £50 towards prosecution costs but escaped without a fine.

Sentencing, chairwoman of the bench Lizzie Hughes told Moir he could have faced jail but for his early guilty pleas, contrition and lack of previous offences.

She said: "We accept this was an isolated incident but we cannot excuse the amount of alcohol in your blood on that occasion."