Pensioners disarmed gunman

The women struck the gunman on a daytrip to Calais

Three elderly women on a day trip to France attacked and disarmed a man who tried to rob them at gunpoint in their car.

They hit the man over the head with his own gun, but he managed to push two of them out of the car.

The third woman forced him to crash as he drove off with her in the back.

The incident happened during a visit to Calais, as the three friends stopped at chemist's.

The women's actions have been praised.

The man pointed the gun at them through their car window and tried to grab the car keys.

It was like a black and white film with nobody saying anything until I shouted to Joan 'hit him over the head with the gun'

Anne Aylward

But the robber was surprised when one of the women grabbed the gun and started hitting him with it, while another punched his arm.

The gunman managed to fight off Joan Windsor and Jean Douglas, both of Hove, East Sussex, by pushing them out of the car and then sped away.

But grandmother-of-eight Anne Aylward, who was still in the back seat, attacked him until the car crashed.

The trio have now been described as the "have-a-go golden girls" by one of their sisters.

One of them was still holding the weapon when the emergency services arrived.

Mrs Aylward, from Littlehampton, West Sussex, said: "It was like a black and white film with nobody saying anything until I shouted to Joan 'hit him over the head with the gun'.

'Lost control'

"She hit him on the head a couple of times but she couldn't get a really good whack at him.

"He pushed hard on the accelerator and I realised that if I didn't stop him then I would probably be dead.

"So I yanked his head to the side and he lost control of the car."

The Rover ploughed into a concrete flower tub in the middle of the road and the man fled empty-handed.

Mrs Aylward added: "Apparently I got out of the car, reached for my handbag, put it over my shoulder and tottered back towards the others with blood spurting everywhere."

Mrs Windsor who was driving the car and disarmed the attacker, said: "This won't stop us enjoying ourselves.

"My sister calls us have-a-go golden girls. I got the gun so he couldn't shoot us.

"I then started hitting his neck with the butt, which was really heavy.

"I could hear Anne in the back seat, shouting, 'hit him Joan, hit him with the gun'."

The drama happened on Wednesday when the group of friends pulled up outside a chemist shop to buy toothpaste on the way to a supermarket.

Stitches and x-rays

Mrs Windsor was still holding the gun, which was loaded with six bullets, when the police and ambulance arrived.

Mrs Aylward was taken to hospital to have stitches for a cut above her eye and X-rays taken.