A Wiltshire pensioner has appeared in court accused of causing thousands of pounds worth of damage to the Bank of England.

Austen Espeut, from Chippenham, pleaded not guilty to causing £5,543.80 worth of criminal damage at Westminster Magistrates Court, after Just Stop Oil protesters targeted the bank last Halloween.

The 75-year-old climate activist will now stand trial at Inner London Crown Court on August 29.

Climate activist Rachel Mann, 64, pleaded guilty to causing £6,890 worth of damage to the bank by spraying the words “Just Stop Oil” on its walls in orange paint during the same incident.

She was banned from London for 12 months and was also ordered to pay £1,000 in compensation and a £114 legal fee.

Mann told the court: “I didn’t do what I did lightly, I did it because I was desperate, and I’m still desperate now.”

Also in court were a trio of Just Stop Oil activists accused of invading Lord’s cricket ground during the second Ashes Test.

Judit Murray, 69, Daniel Knorr, 21, and Jacob Bourne, 27, all pleaded not guilty to aggravated trespass having been accused of obstructing or disrupting a person engaged in a lawful activity.

They were granted bail and are due to appear at City of London Magistrates Court on September 28.