Sir Cliff Richard has told a High Court he thought he might "have a heart attack or stroke," following the BBC's coverage of a raid on his home.

The 77-year-old singer has taken legal action over BBC coverage of the search at his home in Sunningdale, Berkshire, in August 2014, which was staged after a sex-assault allegation.

He told the court how his "health suffered, both mentally and physically," following the raid and added "at one point ... I actually thought I was going to have a heart attack or stroke."

BBC bosses dispute Sir Cliff's claims, saying it was in the public interest to cover the raid.

Sir Cliff explained how he saw footage of the police search on his home for the first time while at a hotel in Portugal after returning from a winery.

The singer's voice cracked as he recalled watching the news item and said the memory was "engraved".

The pop star said he witnessed footage from cameras which could see "right into" his apartment and had recorded officers searching through his belongings."

He added: "It wasn't a very pleasant feeling and by that time I had heard of the allegation and seeing it made me feel even worse."

South Yorkshire Police issued a "fulsome and unequivocal apology" to Sir Cliff following the raid and paid him £400,000 damages in May last year.

The force is asking Mr Justice Mann, who is overseeing the trial at the High Court in London, to order that the BBC make a contribution to the damages it paid to Sir Cliff.

Jason Beer QC said the force accepted its own "unlawful conduct" but claimed the BBC was "more responsible" for the damage to Sir Cliff.

The barrister said by confirming Sir Cliff's identity to a BBC journalist and by discussing the search warrant, the force acted unlawfully.

He added that it was the decision to name Sir Cliff, which the force had made clear it would not do, which resulted in the singer suffering "damage".