Little Britain conman: Defendant is pushed into court in a wheelchair... then has an Andy Pipkin moment hours later when he thinks no-one's looking

  • Phillip Lemonheigh was pushed into Swansea Crown Court in a wheelchair
  • Hours later, he went for a stroll when he thought no one was looking
  • He was in the dock after disguising his car as an ambulance so he could speed while running errands for his bed-bound wife
  • Lemonheigh admitted dangerous driving and perverting course of justice 

By David Wilkes for the Daily Mail

Published: | Updated:

It could be a scene out of Little Britain featuring Matt Lucas’s comic creation Andy Pipkin.

But this is Phillip Lemonheigh being pushed into court in a wheelchair – then getting up and going for a stroll when he thought no one was looking.

He was in the dock after disguising his car as an ambulance and using a flashing blue light so he could speed while running errands for his bed-bound wife.

Disabled? Phillip Lemonheigh is pushed to his hearing by stepson Bryan Rowe

Disabled? Phillip Lemonheigh is pushed to his hearing by stepson Bryan Rowe

Finding his feet: Hours later, he is seen walking around and pushing his wheelchair

Finding his feet: Hours later, he is seen walking around and pushing his wheelchair

Lemonheigh, 59, admitted dangerous driving and perverting the course of justice when he appeared at Swansea Crown Court. Judge Peter Heywood said of the case: ‘I don’t think I have ever come across something so bizarre.’

Lemonheigh, of Neath, South Wales, now faces jail. He recently suffered a heart attack which has left him in a wheelchair, the court heard.

Asked about his trip to the shops, Lemonheigh said: ‘Yes, I walked there and back'

Asked about his trip to the shops, Lemonheigh said: ‘Yes, I walked there and back'

Lemonheigh was seen arriving in a wheelchair pushed by his stepson Bryan Rowe, 41. 

But hours later he ditched the chair – and was photographed the next day walking to the shops unaided.

In Little Britain, actor Lucas has made millions laugh with his character Andy Pipkin who fakes disability and leaps in and out of his wheelchair when no one is looking, fooling his friend Lou, played by David Walliams.

Asked about his trip to the shops, Lemonheigh told The Sun: ‘Yes, I walked there and back but when I got in I had to sit and rest for half an hour.’ 

Yesterday, Mr Rowe said Lemonheigh was feeling too weak to comment. 

The jobless stepson added: ‘You should have seen how slow he was walking. 

'As long as he takes it easy he is OK, otherwise he gets tired so easily.’

The court heard how Lemonheigh, who did not have a driving licence, stuck ‘emergency response’ signs on his wife Noreen’s Renault Laguna.

A speed camera recorded him running a traffic light 24 seconds after it turned red and doing 73mph in a 50mph zone at a notorious accident spot on the A4119 in Llantrisant near Cardiff. 

He claimed he had been a ‘volunteer ambulance driver’ at the time of the offence.

After the hearing, a laughing Lemonheigh admitted he had been driving the fake ambulance for three months, adding: ‘I just went a bit far and they caught me. 

'I don’t think I was doing anything wrong.’ He will be sentenced on March 20.

In Little Britain, Andy Pipkin, played by Matt Lucas, fakes his disability, fooling his friend Lou, played by David Walliams

In Little Britain, Andy Pipkin, played by Matt Lucas, fakes his disability, fooling his friend Lou, played by David Walliams

Andy has made millions laugh when he repeatedly leaps in and out of his wheelchair when no one is looking

Andy has made millions laugh when he repeatedly leaps in and out of his wheelchair when no one is looking

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