A FATHER woke up in his bed to find a knife-wielding woman standing over him in her bra and knickers.

Richard Hill, aged 44, said he was 'terrified' when he saw the intruder holding three carving knives above him, at around 4am yesterday morning.

The former doorman believes the woman, who is in her 20s, snuck into his home and took the knives from his kitchen.

Mr Hill, of Oldbury Road, Worcester, said: "For a second or two I was terrified. I grabbed her wrist...and tried to calm her down a bit.

"I've been stabbed a couple of times working the doors. I wasn't as scared [then] as this.

"I got her onto the sofa to try and talk to her very carefully.

"I was trying to get her to snap out of the situation she was in. She obviously has problems.

"She was saying 'people are trying to kill me'. She was incoherent.

"I calmed her down and got the police to come."

He said the woman entered his home through an unlocked door, which he only ever locks when his two teenage children are staying with him.

Mr Hill, who now works as a maths tutor, also claims that the intruder drank some of his whiskey before sneaking into his bedroom.

He said: "I have a bottle on my kitchen side. The bottle was sealed and now it's half empty."

He emphasised that he is concerned for the woman's mental health and will not press charges against her.

Mr Hill was previously jailed for five years for having an illegal sawn-off shotgun at his home.

He said he kept the weapon to protect his family as he was the boss of a security firm at the time.

He added that the mental health courses and Samaritans work he did in prison were helpful when he was trying to calm the woman.

A spokesman for West Mercia Police: "Police were called to the concerns for the safety of a woman, who is reported to have entered a property on Oldbury Road around 4am this morning.

"The woman, aged in her 20s, was detained under the Mental Health Act and taken to hospital for specialist medical care. Nobody is reported to have been injured during the incident."