Crowds wreck Devon mansion after BBC party "shout out"

LONDON (Reuters) - Hundreds of youngsters gatecrashed a private 18th birthday party in Devon after hearing about it on the radio and caused thousands of pounds worth of damage, the owner’s wife was quoted as saying on Sunday.

Rebecca Brooks told reporters up to 2,000 uninvited teenagers turned up at the Grade II-listed property in Bovey Tracey after some details were given during a "shout out" on Pete Tong’s BBC Radio 1 programme. The "shout outs" are given every week.

The family believed it had prepared well for the 100 invited guests, hiring four bouncers and locking doors in the house, which is also used as a field studies centre.

But when the crowds arrived, "we had no chance," the BBC quoted the family as saying. "They absolutely wrecked the place."

When police were called to the Georgian mansion they were pelted with glass by gatecrashing revellers. Property in the house was smashed and windows were broken, police said in a statement.

One person collapsed and was taken to hospital by ambulance.

The BBC said in a statement: "Pete did not specify the name or address of the venue, but read out details of a mansion party taking place in Bovey Tracey, sent in by a listener.

"He gives shout outs on his show every week -- listeners are familiar with this format -- and he would never .....continued below

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(Reporting by Avril Ormsby; Editing by Tim Pearce)