Arthur Collins trial: Ferne McCann's ex says 'acid' in car was secret hair loss shampoo

The ex-boyfriend of Towie star Ferne McCann has told a court that text messages he sent about "acid" in his car referred to a special shampoo for hair loss.

Arthur Collins, 25, is on trial accused of throwing corrosive liquid over a group of revellers at an East London nightclub.

He admits throwing the substance but said it came after he snatched the bottle from another man's hand believing it was being used to spike a drink.

On Tuesday (31 October), Wood Green Crown Court heard how a week before the alleged attack Collins had sent a text to his sister reading: "Tell mum to mind that little hand wash in my car acid."

Collins told jurors the "hand wash" referred to hair thickening shampoo, which contained amino acid and coconut oil. He said he was worried about his nieces finding and "biting it", the Evening Standard reported.

Collins, the father of McCann's unborn child, said he kept the shampoo in his car to hide it from his reality TV star girlfriend so she would not find out about his two hair transplants.

He said had she found it, she would have asked why he needed it and he wouldn't have been able to lie.

George Carter-Stephenson QC, defending Collins, asked: "How good are you at misleading her? Can she tell when you are lying to her?"

"Yes she can," Collins replied.

Collins' sister, Chinade Rowe, said she was aware of his brother's hair loss and even helped massage the special shampoo into this scalp.

She referred to it as "that acid s***", jurors heard.

Prosecutor Luke Ponte asked whether she was lying to the court to help her brother. She replied: "Absolutely not."

More than a dozen people were injured in the alleged attack at the Mangle E8 nightclub in Dalston, East London, on 17 April.

Collins, of Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, denies five counts of grievous bodily harm (GBH) with intent and nine counts of actual bodily harm (ABH) against 14 people.

Also standing trial is Andre Phoenix, of Clyde Road, Tottenham, north London, who denies four counts of GBH and two counts of ABH.

The trial continues.