The jury in the Gemma McCluskie murder trial has been sent home for the day after failing to agree on a verdict.

It is understood that jurors deciding the fate of her brother Tony McCluskie, accused of murdering the former EastEnders actress, will continue their deliberations tomorrow morning.

The 35 year-old window cleaner admits manslaughter but denies murder on the grounds he lost control during an argument about an overflowing sink and his cannabis smoking. His defence claims he suffers from amnesia.

He is alleged to have killed his 29-year-old sister at the home they shared in Pelter Street, Bethnal Green, on March 1 of last year.

He claims he cannot remember attacking the former actress, who was working as a barmaid, cutting up her body into six pieces and dumping them in Regent’s Canal.

He is said to have battered Gemma over the head with a blunt object before carving up her body.

CCTV has been shown to jurors of Tony carrying a suitcase, believed to contain her body parts, into a cab before dumping them in the Regent’s Canal.