British drinker fighting for life after drunken brawl at Munich Fruehlingsfest beer festival

A British man is fighting for his life after a drunken brawl at a Munich beer festival saw him knocked to the ground with a single punch. The 32-year-old, who has not yet been named, suffered life-threatening injuries to his head during the fight on Saturday (23 April).

The incident took place at about 10.40pm on the Theresienwiese, an open space famed for hosting the Bavarian capital's annual Oktoberfest. He was thought to have been attending Fruehlingsfest, another annual celebration full of beer halls and carnival rides.

While the circumstances surrounding the fight remain unclear, a police report claims the Briton grabbed a 26-year-old German man after a dispute. Losing his grip of the man, he was knocked to the floor with a near-deadly punch to the face. The Briton, described by officers as "highly intoxicated" at the time, suffered serious head injuries as a result.

The assailant, an electrician from Munich, was arrested shortly afterwards while the British man was taken to a Munich hospital.

The organisers of Fruehlingsfest say the carnival, which takes place in the last two weeks of April, has grown to become a major visitor attraction for tourists. With fairground rides and beer tents, it claims to cater for families wanting "a gentle stroll around the funfair", as well as those after "full blooded partying".