Pictures show inside Bedfordshire lab of explosives obsessive who blew up home in Sharnbrook

New images show inside the chemical lab an explosives obsessive set up at the home he shared with his mother.

Matthew Haydon, 48 - who once wrote to the children's television programme Jim’ll Fix It and asked if he could throw a grenade on TV - was on Friday found guilty of causing an explosion at the four-bedroom home the pair shared in Sharnbrook, Bedfordshire.

He suffered wounds to his chest and hands in a blast caused by a chemical reaction on 10 April 2023.

Afterwards, he told police that he had a longstanding interest in weaponry and had been “researching” explosives after being affected by the suicide bombing at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester in 2017.

Haydon was found guilty by a majority verdict of causing an explosion likely to endanger life or property.

His mother returned from a weekend away and heard a loud bang from her son's home laboratory, jurors heard.

Haydon was shouting “help me, help me”, having suffered burns and bleeding.

She put him in the shower to relieve the burns and bleeding and called 999, the court heard.

Neighbours said they heard a loud thudding boom, felt their house shake and saw that the Haydons' window had smashed, jurors were told.

After being treated in hospital, Haydon was interviewed by police and admitted causing the explosion but said it was an accident.

The defendant also told police he had issues related to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

During a search of his home police seized chemicals, equipment, electronic devices, and handwritten notes.

On his laptop were instructions for explosives, and there was evidence that he had bought chemicals including hexamethylene triperoxide diamine (HMTD), the court was told.

Jurors were shown footage of the defendant carrying out various experiments with explosives which were found on a camera.

In one video, Haydon was heard commenting on a passing dog walker before detonating a device strapped to a tree.

The defendant accepted he had mixed chemicals which caused an explosion, but disputed that the level of explosive used was sufficient to endanger life or property.

He said he had been encouraged by a JobCentre to start up his own business and had been looking at setting up a pest control company.

Following the guilty verdict, Haydon was remanded into custody to be sentenced at a later date.

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