A person heard the “Growing” moments before stabbing a reverse counting champion in a fan club tournament of a TV quiz, a jury heard by a jury.
31 -year -old John Coven is told that he would have to run into a room with a knife in his hand and was lodged on a table to attack rival Thomas Kerry, a jury heard.
Prosecutor Rosalind Scott Bell said the incident took place on September 14 at a meeting of the Focal Countdown Group last year, where former contestants and fans meet each other at the channel 4 TV quiz show.
After catching CCTV footage Cowen, he entered the room at the Venrite Social Club at Blackpool, Lancashire, shown in the Preston Crown Court soon after 11.30 pm.
At that time about 30 people including Mr. Kerry were in the club’s function room.
Mrs. Scott Bell said: “The defendant had a knife in his left hand. You can do it out, shining, as soon as he walks behind the camera.
“He sees Mr. Kerry and he then breaks into a run and he goes straight to him. The defendant was going directly to Mr. Kerry across the table with his left hand.
“Mr. Kerry was forced back to the seat behind him and you can just try to kick him towards the defense.
“Mr. Kerry then caught the defendant’s wrist in an attempt to stop the attack. By then he was stabbed.
“He will tell how he was only for a while in the Wainwright Club when he heard growing.”
Cowen was pulled by others in the room and was restrained on the ground before calling the police.
Mr. Kerry was treated for a wound for his left bicep at the hospital.
When Cowen was arrested, he was discovered and found that there was another kitchen knife in his pocket, the court heard.
Mrs. Scott Bell said that the alleged victim was a member of the Fan Club since 2011 and knew Kowen from other countdown events.
Kowen was not present in the court as the gamblers were told that they were “seriously mentally unhealthy” and in the hospital.
Judge Gai Maithison said that he ruled to prosecute the coven unfit and told the jury that it is a fact-chanting hearing that would be asked to determine whether he had allegedly done acts.
From Cowen, Morekamb, a public place is accused of capturing wounds and two cases of a bladeed article.
He appeared in the countdown in 2017, when he scored the third highest total of the series, including a contestant, including spreading the word nine-literate.
He competed in another 11 episodes, winning eight consecutive competitions before he was defeated at the end.
Giving evidence, Mr. Kerry-Ek East counting champion-Ne said that he saw Cowen holding the knife, before he heard “half-go-gro, half-scale”.
He said: “He was pushing the people and tables of the past.
“He came to me with a knife and he then stabbed me in hand. Immediately I grabbed her arm and called for help.”
The gamblers were told that some attendees in the informal tournament organized monthly across the country – an app to practice online games.
Jonathan Lali, while defending, asked Mr. Kerry: “Is it right that Mr. Koven said that he did not know about the people using that app?”
Mr. Kerry said: “I don’t remember.”
Mr. Leli said: “Can you ever remember that they felt that people were using the app and they felt cheated?”
Mr. Kerry said: “Yes, he said something like this at some point.”