A Maidstone man is critical in hospital after being mown down by a “hit-and-run” driver outside a nightclub.

Jack Willmott, 25, had been on a night out with friends at Brentwood’s Sugar Hut, a regular haunt of celebrities from the TV show The Only Way Is Essex, when a blue Audi ploughed into a group outside on the pavement.

The crash happened at 3.10am last Sunday (April 2).

Childhood friend Charlotte Wright, of Wateringbury set up a Go Fund Me page in a bid to raise £5,000 to help with Jack’s recovery.

She wrote: “In the early hours of Sunday a young man was brutally run down not once but twice and sustained critical and life-threatening injuries after a night out in Essex.

"We are hoping and praying for a full recovery and a bright future for him.

“He is one of my best friend’s sons. Anyone who has the pleasure to know Jack will know he is funny, caring and always full of life."

Jack sustained “extensive” injuries when the car slammed into a 20-strong crowd during what police say was a brawl. Another man and woman were treated in hospital but discharged later.

The Go Fund Me campaign raised £380 before being closed prematurely.

The Sugar Hut is in a converted 15 century coaching inn and boasts Baroque and Asian decor.

Police say a 32-year-old man from West Drayton has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and a 26-year-old woman from Hornchurch has been arrested on suspicion of aiding and abetting. Officers are still appealing for witnesses.