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A former multimillionaire Scottish laird who twice ordered a hitman to murder his child's mother faces jail after being found guilty of strangling a woman during a live performance of We Will Rock You.

Malcolm Potier, 74, put his hands around the neck of Kirsty O'Donnell, 51, after she sang along to the show at the London Coliseum on June 7, 2023.

Potier sat next to theatre critic Lizzie Loveridge, the editor of TheatreVibe, during the show, which featured Queen guitarist Brian May, Southwark Crown Court heard this week.

During the show, Ms Loveridge confronted Ms O'Donnell and her university friend Charlotte Goss, who were singing to the songs, saying: 'Will you two shut the f*** up?'

To Ms O'Donnell's reply of 'that's a bit rude', Potier 'leapt into action' and 'aggressively' said: 'I will show you what rude is.'

Potier, from Sarratt, Hertfordshire, then leant over and grabbed Ms O'Donnell's neck, applying 'intense pressure' for 'around three to four seconds'.

He was found guilty of one charge of non-fatal strangulation on Friday, and will be remanded in custody until sentenced on September 10. The conviction carries a maximum term of five years in jail.

It can be revealed Potier was jailed in Australia in 2002 for soliciting a hitman for the double murder of his child's mother, and her then-partner.

Malcolm Potier, 74, attacked Kirsty O'Donnell, 51, during a live theatre performance of We Will Rock You at the London Coliseum on June 7, 2023 Pictured: Potier attended Southwark Crown Court on Tuesday

Potier previously owned the Hebridean island of Gigha, which he bought for £5.4million in 1989 and later lost - alongside his estimated £30million net worth -with his company's collapse two years later.

The trained surveyor had beaten off competition from Rolling Stones's Mick Jagger to purchase the island, which is off the Mull of Kintyre. He was never declared bankrupt, but his assets were seized by a Swiss Bank.

Amid a custody battle, Potier snatched his daughter, who was two at the time, in 1999 and entered Australia on false passports.

He, then aged 50, was arrested in Sydney the next year.

Potier then, while in a detention centre, paid a fellow inmate £4,600 to kill his ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend.

However, upon release, the would-be assassin Alesandro Basso fled to his native Italy with the money.

Potier's six-year sentence was extended by 12 years when he hatched a new plot to kill Ms Oswald while in prison in Long Bay, New South Wales.

He had frequently called an Australian woman he had befriended while incarcerated, asking her to find him a killer.

Malcom Potier pictured in 1989 as the new Laird of Gigha, just off the Mull of Kintyre, which he purchased for £5.4million - beating off Rolling Stone Mick Jagger

The woman then reported his request to police, who sent an undercover officer posing as a hitman to discuss Potier's wishes, which were recorded. He was later arrested.

The former laird of Gigha flew back to London after being released for the attempted double murder in 2015, as he sought to see his daughter.

However, he was made subject of a Violent Offender Order upon landing at Heathrow, preventing any contact with his ex-girlfriend or family.

The order stated that the woman is now in a worldwide witness protection scheme after Potier's conviction for incitement to murder in Australia.

He sought to overturn this in Westminster Magistrates' Court when it was up for renewal in May 2021, which was denied. He then appealed the decision a year later.

Ms O'Donnell, from north Yorkshire, told the court how she was in 'shock, terror and just pure disbelief' following the assault.

The incident erupted in the West End theatre after Ms Loveridge complained about Ms Goss's use of her phone during the performance. She subsequently put it away.

Ms O'Donnell, who works in HR, told jurors: 'At the time of the assault he was sat down, people were singing, people were enjoying the show. I don't believe we were particularly loud, it was a musical and we sang along to the words of the songs being played.

Potier sat next to theatre critic Lizzie Loveridge, the editor of TheatreVibe, during the show

'That wasn't uncommon to what people around us were doing.'

Ms O'Donnell said once the pressure had 'eased', she was able to ask Potier: 'Can you please let go?' adding he then 'turned and fixated on the stage again'.

The self-described 'theatre fan' stayed in her seat until the end of the show as she 'didn't want to walk past [Potier] after the incident'.

Ms Loveridge and Potier both left during the encore. The theatre critic would later write a scathing review of the musical in which she noted the 'behaviour of the audience'.

The jury was told Ms O'Donnell later identified Potier and Ms Loveridge after a fellow audience member, Louise Wallace, gave her a business card she had been given by the theatre critic earlier in the evening.

Ms Wallace told Ms O'Donnell the incident was 'unacceptable' and urged her to report it to police, the jury was told.

The mother–of–two later found Ms Loveridge on Facebook, where she had photos of Potier on her page. She also found a review of the show on the critic's website TheatreVibe.

She told jurors she was '100 per cent sure' of the identity of her attacker.

Ms Loveridge wrote a scathing review of the musical in which she noted the 'behaviour of the audience'

She added: 'That is him, I could tell by the features on the photograph.

'I don't forget faces, I instantly recognised him. The incident shook me enormously. Seeing faces at the time brought it back and the incident played out in front of me straight away.'

Ms O'Donnell attended the musical with her university friend Ms Goss, from Kent, during a catch-up after six months of not seeing each other.

The pair moved seats for the second half of the show after Ms O'Donnell became nauseous, due to the summer heat and the height of their seats, and moved next to Potier for the remainder of the performance, the court heard.

Ms Wallace, who was sat near Potier and Ms Loveridge from the start of the show, said the theatre critic was 'very grumpy' after people moved closer to her seat.

The court heard Ms Loveridge proceeded to tell people off, Ms Wallace included, for having their phones out – while 'hushing and shushing' audience members.

Ms Wallace said 'Ms Loveridge told someone to 'shut the f*** up',' which was followed by an altercation she couldn't see from her seat.

She described Ms O'Donnell as being 'visibly shaken and upset', after 'someone grabbed her around the neck'.

Potier, pictured at a previous hearing, faces jail after being found guilty of non-fatal strangulation

The incident occurred at London Coliseum, where Ben Elton's production of We Will Rock You was being shown (pictured)

Ms Goss told jurors Potier was 'leaning over [her] to get to Kirsty who was next to me', adding: 'He would have been very close to me.

'After that I just froze, I looked at Kirsty as I couldn't get over what happened. So we just sat there and watched the rest of the show.'

Ms O'Donnell reported the incident to theatre staff and filed a police report at Charing Cross Police Station that night, before making six additional statements.

Ms Loveridge denied knowing Potier and told police she only sat next to him after she offered up her spare press ticket to 'a man outside', the court heard on Wednesday.

Potier was arrested on November 28, 2023, but 'de-arrested' on medical grounds.

He was then invited back for a voluntary interview in which he made no comment to all the questions asked.

He claimed he had been misidentified.

In his closing speech Sam Lubner, prosecuting, said Potier answered no comment in his police interview with the police and did not give evidence during the trial.

Queen guitarist Brian May supplied an electric solo accompanying Bohemian Rhapsody at the end of the show

He suggested if Potier was innocent, he would have wanted to clear his name immediately.

'Imagine you genuinely had not done it? You were not the person who had strangled that lady. What would you do in that situation?,' Mr Lubner told the jury.

'Allow me to be blunt here. Strangling someone in a theatre is pretty nasty business.

'If it wasn't you...wouldn't you shout it from the rooftops just to show it wasn't you?

'You might want to nip it in the bud and tell the police where you were. But Mr Potier does no such thing.

'He called no witnesses to explain where he was.'

After the jury gave their verdict, Judge Dafna Spiro informed jurors of Potier's previous conviction. This had to be hidden due to contempt.

Judge Spiro said: 'Mr Potier apart from now today did not have any convictions in England and Wales, however, in 2002 Mr Potier was found guilty of inciting to murder in Australia, and was sentenced to six years.

'Whilst serving in prison for that offence he commited an offence of soliciting to murder for which he was sentenced to a further 12 years in prison. That was for the same victim.'

After he was remanded in custody Potier's barrister Mr Clarke said: 'His concern, having been remanded in custody today, is that he would not be able to obtain his medication.'

Judge Spiro said: 'Well, he would need to tell his doctor what his medication is... I am afraid there is no alternative to being remanded in custody this afternoon.'

Potier will be sentenced on September 10.