JOANNE Lees today showed the world there was no rift between her boyfriend's family and herself - despite admitting an affair with another man.

She left court tightly surrounded by Peter Falconio's family.

She also stopped to kiss her boyfriend's parents on the cheek in front of a crowd of waiting photographers and film crews before getting into a police car.

It was the first time Miss Lees had left the court with all four members of the Falconio family at her side.

This week she admitted meeting a man called Nick through colleagues at Dymocks bookshop in Sydney and having `intimate' relations with him while travelling and still going out with Mr Falconio, 28.

She said she had kept their relationship a secret from her boyfriend and admitted it had "overstepped the boundary of friendship".

Miss Lees left court surrounded by Joan and Luciano Falconio, of Hepworth, and their sons, Paul and Nick, from New Mill.

As they walked slowly down the steps of the court Miss Lees slowed and turned to her left, stopping to kiss Mrs Falconio on her cheek before turning round further to kiss her boyfriend's father in the same way.

After the stage-managed opportunity to publicly show her solidarity with her boyfriend's family she got in the police car and left.

The family then walked back to their hotel.

Yesterday, Miss Lees left the court with the two Falconio brothers on either side of her after completing her evidence. It was the first time she had left the court with members of her boyfriend's family.

The 32-year-old, originally from Huddersfield, met Mr Falconio in a nightclub in the town in 1996. In August the next year she moved to Brighton, where he was studying, to live with him.

The couple arrived in Australia on January 16, 2001, about six months before the attack, as part of a round-the-world trip.

Bradley Murdoch, 47, of Broome, Western Australia, is on trial at the Northern Territory Supreme Court in Darwin. He denies murdering Mr Falconio and abducting and assaulting Miss Lees on the Stuart Highway, near Barrow Creek, north of Alice Springs, on July 14, 2001.

Meanwhile, in court the hours after Miss Lees's ambush were today relived in an Australian court.

Witnesses recounted how a distraught Miss Lees was brought into an Outback pub after being rescued by two truckers, Vince Millar and Rodney Adams. The court had earlier been told how Miss Lees had managed to escape from a man she believed had shot Mr Falconio.

Les Pilton, the owner of the Barrow Creek pub, said there had been a `New Year's Eve' party - as was traditional for them in July - for some builders who were staying there on the night of the attack. Between 20 to 30 people attended.

He said Mr Millar, who was a regular, came in and asked if he had seen any four-wheel drive vehicles or camper vans, but he had not.

Mr Pilton said he went to Mr Millar's truck to help persuade Miss Lees to come into the pub.

Describing her short walk from the truck to the pub he said: "She was cowering away under Rodney's arm as we were walking in.

"She was welling up in her face, sort of like puffed up. Each time she appeared to be breaking down she produced some inner strength.

"I saw some tears in her eyes, but she didn't let herself openly cry."

He said he asked Miss Lees if she wanted to use the phone to ring her parents, "but she said she just couldn't at that stage".

He said she agreed to take a rest provided he left the room to the door open and the light on. He said he gave her an extra duvet, but she was only in the room for 20 minutes before returning to the bar area to wait for police as she could not sleep.

He said police arrived about 4.20am and took over looking after Miss Lees.

Cathy Curly, a barmaid at the pub, said she had a conversation with Miss Lees in the toilets about her dog Tex and its similarities to the one owned by the attacker.

Miss Curly said: "All she said to me was, I had asked her if the attacker's dog was similar to Tex and she told me it was similar, but with black and brown in it.

"She appeared shaken up when we were in the toilets, crying and saying she couldn't believe it was happening to her."

Dr Matthew Wright, who examined Miss Lees at Alice Springs Hospital the day after the attack, said she appeared quiet and subdued during the examination. He had received many of the details of what happened from police, rather than Miss Lees.

Under cross-examination by Grant Algie, for the defence, Dr Wright said she had pointed out many of her injuries to him.

He agreed that he said in a statement two weeks after the attack that she had denied being hit on the head.

The trial was adjourned until Monday.