Joel McIlroy: Home and Away star takes a swipe at the show while addressing a judge as he appears in court accused of smashing a truck window in with a cricket bat

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An ex Home and Away star joked about the TV show while in court over a road rage incident.

Joel McIlroy - who played Flynn Saunders, the husband of Kate Ritchie's character Sally, on Home and Away between 2003 and 2006 - appeared at Downing Centre Local Court on Wednesday where a charge of destroying property was dropped on mental health grounds.

The former actor, who is now suffering from a terminal brain condition, accidently smashed the window of a truck with a cricket bat in Sydney's Surry Hills on July 6, with Magistrate Christine Hackett ruling his condition - Huntington’s disease - caused him to 'act suddenly'.

Mr McIlroy's solicitor told the court his client had been an actor on the hit Australian soap. 

Magistrate Hackett said he 'didn't really watch Home and Away', to which Mr McIlroy replied: 'I don't blame you.' 

Joel McIlroy appeared at the Downing Centre Local Court on Wednesday where a charge of destroying property was dropped on mental health grounds

The court heard that the former TV star has been battling Huntington's disease since 2007, an inherited disorder that causes parts of the brain to gradually break down and die.

Mr McIlroy's diagnosis had led to the sudden outburst after he became enraged when two drivers got into in a road rage incident.

According to the Daily Telegraph, his solicitor told the court that '(when) he perceives an injustice it triggers him'.

Mr McIlroy had bought the cricket bat shortly before the incident as an early birthday present for the son of a deceased friend.

Upon tapping on the window of one of the vehicles, it 'shattered' leaving Mr McIlroy immediately remorseful and offering to pay for the damages.

'The unfortunate reality of this disease is there are lapses,' Mr McIlroy's solicitor told the court.

'it's degenerative, it's unyielding.'

The court had also heard that Mr McIlroy had not been pressured into reimbursement as there is now a warrant out for the truck driver for a separate incident. 

The former actor revealed he had intentions to further his career past Home and Away, much like Chris Hemsworth, Heath Ledger and Isla Fisher.

He had been at the height of his popularity just a year prior to his diagnosis, nominated for a Silver Logie for in 2006.

'I always wanted to be in the theatre doing the classics but I wasn't really good enough,' Mr McIlroy told the court.

'I had this diagnosis hanging over me.'

His solicitor told the court they had never read a 'more favourable police fact sheet' than his client's.

Mr McIlroy is famous for his role as Flynn Saunders, the husband of Kate Ritchie's (both pictured) character Sally on Home and Away between 2003 and 2006

The disease hinders Mr McIlroy's  impulse control, which led to him accidentally smashing the window of a truck with a cricket bat 

Mr McIlroy had previous charges of assault similarly dismissed under the mental health act after he attacked a female plain-clothed  police officer on October 22, 2019.

The strength of his medication had doubled shortly before the attack, further reducing his impulse control.

While facing the assault charges, the court heard that Mr McIlroy had 'significant cognitive impairment' by 2013 and by late 2019, 'all of his medical professionals note a large and significant decline of cognitive flexibility'.

Magistrate Jennifer Giles noted Mr McIlroy 's doctors 'estimate emergence or diagnosis to death through a progressive decline of physical condition and mental functioning'.

'They estimate some 10 years for the defendant with five odd years in care'.