A knife-wielding man tried to stab a police officer after jumping on top of a patrol car and smashing the windscreen.

Police were called to Brunswick Road, in Hove, after several panicked reports of a man brandishing a long blade chasing and threatening passers by.

He was cornered by two police cars in nearby Waterloo Street - where he climbed onto one of the vehicles, smashed its windscreen and stabbed through the roof with the knife.

The car contained a 28-year-old male officer and a 21-year-old female officer, both of whom were uninjured.

The knifeman then attempted to stab another 28-year-old male officer but was overpowered.

Shoppers and residents spoke of their shock after the incident, which took place on Saturday at about 11am.

Beryl Owen, 67, of Cambridge Road, Hove, said: "I saw the man at the bottom of Brunswick Road shouting at people walking past. He pulled a knife out and people were screaming and running off. It was like something out of a film.

"The police came and he jumped on top of one of the cars and the windscreen smashed. It was unbelievable, people were standing round in shock.

"I saw a policeman hit him with a truncheon to try and overpower him. I'm just pleased no one was hurt. It could have been a lot worse."

A nearby shopkeeper, who did not want to be named, said: "I saw him chasing people and shouting at them waving a knife around. It was surreal, people were literally running away from him.

"I closed the door and locked the shop up straight away. The police came very quickly and he was chased down into Waterloo Street.

"This is a busy road but I've never seen anything like that, it was very frightening."

No police officers or members of the public were injured.

A long-bladed knife was recovered. The road was closed for about two hours as forensic experts scoured the scene.

The incident is being investigated by Sussex Police's major crime branch and the suspect was last night being quizzed by detectives. Detective Inspector Michelle Collins said: "This was obviously a very unusual incident, but the officers at the scene handled it extremely well. The officer who was attacked is fine.

"He was incredibly brave and I have no doubt at all that his actions helped to stop a member of the public being seriously injured."

* Ayhan Kilavuz, 36, of Waterloo Street, Hove, has been charged with attempting to wound a police officer and making threats to kill. He will appear at Brighton Magistrates' Court tomorrow.

Did you see what happened? Email news@theargus.co.uk

Did you take pictures? Email pictures@theargus.co.uk