Charles Saatchi has again defended his actions in the wake of the publication of photos that appear to show him choking his wife Nigella Lawson.
Further images also show him twisting his wife’s nose and putting a finger in her nostril, to which he exlained he was attempting to “wipe his wife’s nose”.
“Even domestic goddesses sometimes have a bit of snot in their nose. I was trying to fish it out,” the advertising millionaire told the Evening Standard.
While Saatchi has commented on the images numerous times, saying “there was no grip, it was a playful tiff”, Nigella’s spokesman said the celebrity chef would be maintaining her silence on the matter.
Related: Nigella: The truth about my marriage
“Going to America may give Nigella the space from her husband to help find a way of repairing the damage that has been done,” a source told the paper.
Since the publication of the pictures a week ago, Nigella has moved out of the pair’s $23 million family home in Chelsea. She has also been spotted out without her wedding ring.
