Husband and wife would 'swear at each other' in front of granddaughter, murder trial told

• Watch our report from Sam Blackledge

A hypnotist accused of murder would have "shouting matches" with her husband and they would swear at each other in front of their granddaughter, a court has heard.Christine Rawle, 70, is on trial at Exeter Crown Court for stabbing Ian Rawle to death.Mrs Rawle's granddaughter, Georgina Bufton, was asked about her childhood visits to their home near Braunton."My grandad was a very dismissive man," she said."He would attack her femininity and try to disempower her. Any woman would react to that."It would end with an 'F you' on that side, and an 'F you' on this side, and then it would dissipate until the next day."Asked whether she witnessed any violence, Ms Bufton said: "I think I saw nan slap him during an argument, but I think it was very well deserved."

Ms Bufton said she had a happy childhood, but added: "Obviously as a child everything is sunshine and roses.

"You hear things, and it's only as I grew up and had abusive relationships of my own, I saw things for what they could be."Jurors heard the defendant, Christine Rawle, suffers from Klippel-Trenaunay syndrome, a condition which affects the development of blood vessels.

Ms Bufton said Ian, who was Mrs Rawle's second husband, was not sympathetic or compassionate and would "brush her off".

She said he would comment on her physical appearance and her weight, which affected her confidence and drove her to drink alcohol.

"Some things stopped being jokes," she said.

"He would come home from work and say 'I don't want that for dinner'. He was mentally torturing her over a really long extended period of time, to wear her down, to get a split reaction.

"He had a view that my nan could not do anything right. He was a very cold man."

Christine Rawle 'felt trapped' in her marriage

Mrs Rawle told a friend she was considering divorce and was "fed up of waiting" just hours before allegedly stabbing him in the back, the court heard.

The defendant sent a series of text messages to Alison Gilbert on August 21 2022.

She told her friend she wanted to "get my fair share" and needed to "move quickly".

"I am fed up of waiting," she said in one message. "Everything is waiting, waiting, waiting."

Giving evidence in court, Ms Gilbert said she believed her friend felt "trapped" in her marriage.

"She just wanted out. She was trying to find a way. Her main concern was always her animals. She didn't want to lose her animals."

Ms Gilbert said she was concerned Mrs Rawle might try to take her own life.

The court heard Mrs Rawle, now aged 70, was suffering from physical health problems and depression.

"She discussed getting a divorce without a solicitor," Ms Gilbert said. "She could not afford a divorce, and he would never agree to one anyway."

A few hours after those messages, Mrs Rawle called Ms Gilbert to tell her Ian Rawle was dead.

Ian Rawle 'locked ex-partner out of their house'

The jury also heard from Ian Rawle's ex-partner, Margaret Melville, today.

She spoke from behind a screen and told the court Mr Rawle owned shotguns that were once taken away by the police.

Mrs Melville also described an incident in which Mr Rawle locked her out of their home.

Defence barrister Clare Wade KC asked Mrs Melville: "Did you call the police because you were locked out of your own property by your common law husband?"

Mrs Melvile confirmed this was the case, and agreed that the police attended and confiscated his shotguns and shotgun certificates.

Mrs Melvile said Mr Rawle never threatened her with the weapons.

Christine Rawle denies murder. The trial continues.