David Hasselhoff and Pamela Bach appeared in TV shows together

Pamela Bach asked Los Angeles Superior Court for a temporary restraining order against the former Baywatch star.

A judge denied her request, instead instructing the two to stay away from each other, according to court papers which are online.

Hasselhoff's publicist, Judy Katz, told a US entertainment website that the star denied the violence allegations.

The pair began divorce proceedings in January after 16 years of marriage, citing irreconcilable differences. They have two teenage daughters.

West End

Ms Bach was granted custody of one daughter while Mr Hasselhoff was given custody of the other, publicist Judy Katz said.

Mr Hasselhoff's lawyer Melvin Goldsman declined to comment on the allegations of domestic violence.

He added that documents about the hearing had been sealed by the court to protect the pair's daughters and their privacy.

Messages left at the office of Ms Bach's lawyer were not immediately returned.

Mr Hasselhoff rose to fame in the 1980s TV show Knight Rider.

He also played lifeguard Mitch Buchannon in Baywatch from 1989 to 2000.

More recently he starred as Billy Flynn in the in the musical Chicago in London's West End.

Ms Bach appeared in the soap opera The Young and the Restless and in several episodes of Baywatch and Knight Rider.