A British millionaire smashed his Porsche 918 Spyder into dozens of spectators at a charity event in Malta - leaving five people, including a young girl, critically injured.

Paul Bailey was driving at high speed along a disused airport runway when it clipped the grass and crashed through the barriers into a crowd.

It is believed 26 people were injured in total, including the businessman who is in a stable condition in hospital.

A six-year-old girl is among those badly hurt.

Dashcam footage uploaded to YouTube showed the supercar making its final lap before the crash happened on Sunday afternoon.

"The car was speeding down the taxiway when a back wheel went on the grass," a witness told the Times of Malta.

"The car spun out of control, went through the barriers where a large crowd was watching, and into the area of the static car exhibition".

"Many people were hit, there was chaos and screams".

The Paqpaqli Ghall-Istrina event, where the accident happened, is an annual fundraiser organised by the Maltese government.

Mr Bailey sold his telephone conferencing business for stg£28m (€37.7m) in 2012.

Earlier this year, he invested stg£3m (€4.04m) of his fortune in three rare supercars - the Porsche 918 Spyder, a McClaren P1 and a Ferrari LaFerrari, according to the Daily Telegraph.

He is believed to be the first person to own all three vehicles at the same time.

Mr Bailey has reportedly raised thousands for charity by raffling off rides in some of his supercars.

President Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca has said she is heartbroken and traumatised by the major incident.

"I have no words to describe my sorrow at what happened... all we can do is be there for the people affected by this incident," she said.