Oxford Street: BBC reporter witnesses attempted robbery live on air

An attempted robbery on the UK's busiest high street was witnessed by a reporter as she was broadcasting live.

BBC Radio London's Anna O'Neill was speaking on air as she saw two men target an Australian businessman for his Rolex watch on Oxford Street.

Shopkeepers intervened to stop one of the robbers and police said another man with a knife had been Tasered and detained in Marble Arch Tube station.

"It's the first time I've seen anything like it," Ms O'Neill said.

Phil, the businessman who was attacked, told the BBC he had been walking past the Royal Gifts Gallery at about 10:50 BST when he heard some people behind him "and just as I got to this spot, they tackled me and tried to get my watch off me and get my phone".

He said: "I was able to hold on to the small guy who was trying to take my watch and I wouldn't let him go. At this stage, these guys [the shopkeepers] were around him and pulling them off and then he got up and he ran without getting the watch."

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Phil, who only arrived in the UK on Tuesday morning, added that the shopkeepers "retained the other fellow, but the other guy - the small fellow who tackled me - came back and he was starting to cut himself with a knife".

The shopkeepers involved said the man had begun harming himself to try to get them to release his alleged accomplice, which they subsequently did.

The man was reportedly covered in blood which was dripping down his neck and chest.

The Met Police said the man had later been Tasered "to prevent him causing further harm to himself or the public" and was taken to hospital after he was detained.

BBC Radio London had been reporting from Oxford Street as part of a feature on the future of the shopping destination.

Last week, Marks & Spencer launched a legal challenge against a decision to prevent it bulldozing and redeveloping its flagship central London store, which is based on the street and dates back to 1929.

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