The British Army soldier on trial over the Reading Walkabout bar stabbing has told a court that he was 'very sorry' he stabbed a tourist in the head - on a night-out he called 'fun' but 'stressful'. 

The stabbing at Walkabout bar took place in the early hours of Sunday, February 11, when Barbados tourist Tharel Thompson, aged 28 at the time, suffered life-changing injuries.

Two men - Krisma Anthony and Jahlil Charles, both from St Lucia - stand charged with attempted murder. Both men have pleaded not guilty to the charge. 

Earlier this week, the court were shown a video of the attack in a corridor leading to to the bar's toilets. The prosecution has argued that the video shows Mr Charles dealt the first strike to the victim, before ‘three sideways blows dealt by Mr Anthony’ - blows that were committed with a blade, according to Mr Stone.

The stabbing unleashed a ‘fountain of blood’, according to the first witness called by the prosecution during the trial. 

Today, Mr Anthony took to the stand, where he admitted to stabbing Mr Thompson - but said he did not do so with the intention of committing murder. 

Mr Anthony told the court that he had found the knife used in the attack in a toilet cubicle, and he was heading to security to hand in the weapon when he was called back to where Mr Charles and Mr Thompson were talking. 

Mr Thompson was acting 'aggressively' and wagging his finger, according to Mr Anthony, who 'panicked' and 'overreacted' to the allegedly threatening behaviour.  

Addressing Mr Anthony, Prosecutor Mr Jonathan Stone said: "Your stabbing of Mr Thompson I suggest was not an overreaction, it was a cold-blooded attempt to kill him."

Mr Anthony responded: "I only stabbed him once. It was unjust. I'm very sorry for what I have done to Mr Thompson - but I had no intention of killing him."

Mr Stone suggested that Mr Anthony had stabbed Mr Thompson three times in the head - while the defendant said CCTV footage showed him trying to remove the blade from Mr Thompson. 

Turning to messages sent from the soldier's phone after the attack, Mr Stone read out one that said 'lol it was a fun night'.

"Is it fun stabbing a man in the head?" Mr Stone asked. 

Mr Anthony replied: "No sir. I also said it was stressful at the end of the night." 

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The defendant explained to the court that he had spent over an hour in Reading strip club Black Diamond after the attack as he was following his friends.

The court also heard how Mr Anthony came to the UK in July 2021 to join the British Army.

He undertook his basic training at ITC Catterick and was later based in the barracks in Woolwich, London. 

After basic training, he was deployed on exercises in Kenya and Kosovo. 

The trial continues.