Maidstone breathed a sigh of relief today as the town’s phone system returned to normal.

BT managed overnight to fix the software problem at the Maidstone telephone exchange that had caused chaos for two days.

Spokeswoman Emma Littlejohn said: "We apologise to all our customers who experienced problems with crossed-lines or being cut-off.

"It was a very complex fault, something our engineers had never come across before, and it did take a while to solve.

"We don’t yet know what caused it, but we don’t think it was heat related as some people were suggesting. We’re still investigating the cause to ensure that we can prevent it happening again."

Callers across Maidstone and even much wider afield had the dubious pleasure of listening in on other people’s conversations as they tried to make calls, or the frustration if they did manage to connect to the number they wanted of being cut off mid-sentence.

Up to 76,000 lines across the county are thought to have been affected. Many businesses reported problems, with Kent County Council, Maidstone Hospital and Kent Police all affected.

Personal conversations were also overheard as crossed lines led to accidental eavesdropping. They included Aaron making his stationery sales pitch to a client, Jill reporting how she "burnt her bum" on holiday, and Jackie checking on the results of her cholesterol tests.

One unlucky caller stumbled across a couple having a blazing row.

Miss Littlejohn said there was no way of knowing how many interrupted calls occurred or how widespread the problem was. She said: "The fault was at Maidstone but it affected some of the subsidiary exchanges too, with faults being reported in Whitstable, Herne Bay and Folkestone."

Miss Littlejohn said callers should not be charged for wrong connections. She said: "People should check their next bill carefully. If they are unhappy, they should contact their service provider.

"If that is BT, they can call customers services on 150."

To report any faults on the line, call 151.

• For the full story, and more details of overheard conversations, pick up a copy ofthe Kent Messenger.
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