A man who styled himself as the Joker has been cleared of trying to murder his girlfriend - who he called Harley Quinn.

Anthony Yewman, who 'identified' with the infamous Batman villain, was accused of strangling his girlfriend after she threatened to leave him by prosecutors.

But Yewman, from Romford, Essex, argued he acted in self-defence.

The 45 year old was today cleared by jurors, who found him not guilty of attempted murder, as well as alternative charges of GBH with intent and intentional strangulation.

Opening the trial on Wednesday at Southampton Crown Court, prosecutor Matthew Farmer had said Yewman and Ms Dalton had been in an 'on-off relationship' for two years in which there were 'numerous break ups'.

Detailing Yewman's association to the comic book villain, Mr Farmer said he repeatedly referred to himself and his girlfriend as the comic book characters: "It was a constant theme between them, he was the Joker and she was Harley Quinn."

The incident happened at Ms Dalton's home in Fordingbridge on August 30 last year.