VETERAN magician Ali Bongo had a miracle escape after a lorry crushed the driver's side of his Daimler Jaguar when he was on the way to meet Prince Charles at Highgrove.

The 74-year-old was taken to Swindon's Great Western Hospital after the collision on the A350 into Chippenham at 1.45pm on Tuesday but later discharged.

Mr Bongo had been travelling with his colleague Jack Delvin, the driver and owner of the £40,000 Daimler.

They were on their way to a charity event in aid of the Entertainment Artists Benevolent Fund that is supported by the Royal Variety Show.

Mr Bongo and Mr Delvin, who is also in his 70s, had to be cut out of their car by firefighters.

Speaking the day after the crash Mr Bongo said he was lucky to be alive. "I am walking and standing up but I have big black eyes and my nose is out of joint. But I am not too bad," he said.

The pair had taken a wrong turning as they came down the A350 into Chippenham and Mr Bongo admitted they had tried to turn on to the opposite carriageway.

"We wanted to go through a gap and turn around. We indicated we were turning and then we were hit. There was a great crash. It was pretty horrendous at the time," he said.

"Jack head hit my face and my glasses tore a bit off my nose. The windows shattered and I had a mouthful of glass. It felt like I had broken teeth inside.

"Being an old car it was pretty solid. May be that saved us."

A spokesman for Prince Charles said: "We are very sorry to hear about Mr Bongo's accident and wish him a very speedy recovery."

PC Richard Hatch, of Corsham traffic police, said the lorry driver may have swerved to avoid the Daimler as it attempted a U-turn on the dual carriageway.

The white Scania lorry carrying one male passenger was thrown on to the opposite carriage way facing on-coming traffic.

The lorry ground to a halt just after the house known as Pretty Chimneys. The lorry driver and his passenger were uninjured but in a state of severe shock.

The road was closed for four hours between the Plough crossroads and Junction 17 while police investigated. They are appealing for witnesses who may have seen the crash or the black Daimler before the collision to contact (01249) 654455.