VIDEOS of a ‘drunken’ NHS care worker driving the wrong way down the M4 motorway as she passed horrified motorists have been released.

Emma Davies, 43, of St Cynidr Close, Hilltop, Ebbw Vale, got behind the wheel of her red Volkswagen Polo after drinking wine. 

Footage capturing her perilous seven-mile journey in Newport were made public by the Crown Prosecution Service.

Davies was told by a judge it was lucky she hadn’t killed someone. 

(Watch video at the top of article)

Last Friday, at Cardiff Crown Court, Davies was sentenced to a 12-month community order.

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When she first appeared in court in April, prosecutor Rob Simpkins said the mental health nurse drove past three junctions on the motorway in Newport before she performed a U-turn.

He told Cardiff Magistrates’ Court: “This was a prolonged piece of bad driving with deliberate disregard for the safety of others.

“It was aggravated by the fact that she was drunk at the wheel.

“She was spotted at 7.55pm on Monday, April 6, travelling eastbound on the M4 between junction 29 and 30.

“The defendant had driven on the slip road the wrong way and other drivers at flashed their headlights are her.

“She drove past three junctions before she performed a U-turn.”

Judge Shomon Khan heard how the nurse was arrested on the A467 in Forge Lane in Newport.

Mr Simpkins added: “She was the only person inside the car and she was smelling of drink and her words were slurred.

“When she was interviewed, she told police she was a nurse who helped adults with mental health problems.

“She said she was separated from her husband and cares for her mother. She told them she had drank two glasses of wine and decided to drive because she wanted to leave her house.”

The defendant, of St Cynidr Close, Hilltop, pleaded guilty to dangerous driving and drink-driving.

She had 53 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath.

The legal limit is 35mg of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath.

Darren Bishop, representing the defendant, said: “This wasn’t a case where she was suicidal or wanted to harm herself.

“She drank through stress and on an empty stomach. This is a lady of previous clean character.”

Judge Khan said: “This is a most serious offence. The factors are alcohol, the location and being on the wrong side of the road – this could have led to fatalities."

At Cardiff Crown Court last week, she was also ordered to complete a 15-day rehabilitation activity requirement and was banned from driving for 12 months.

The defendant must also sit an extended re-test, was fined £500 and ordered to pay £420 costs and a victim surcharge.