A ONE-MAN volunteer litter patrol has collected his 100th bag of rubbish.

Brian Cavill is a 76-year-old retired photographer who lives in Ridge Nether Moor, Liden.

In June, appalled by litter strewn around his neighbourhood, he donned a high-vis jacket, armed himself with refuse bags and a mechanical grabber, and set out to battle the plague.

Within a month he’d filled 17 bags and by August the total had reached 50.

His 100th bag was filled on a patch of fenced-off ground near the Liden branch of Tesco.

The public-spirited pensioner has no intention of ending his crusade.

He said: “Doing this gets me out, keeps me fittish and gives me something to do. Otherwise I’d be sat at home going to sleep.

“I’m very pleased to be clearing the litter, but at the same time I would rather people didn’t drop it in the first place.

“I wish people would just put it in a bin or take it home with them.”

In the past five months, Brian has filled bags with thousands of drinks cans, plastic bottles, snack wrappers, fast food trays, crisp packets and other rubbish. He’s picked up car wheels, broken electrical goods and in one case an intact VCR. Everything is taken away by the council.

Members of the public regularly stop to congratulate him.

Brian tries not to become angry about the littering but sometimes it’s difficult.

“What really annoys me,” he said, “is coming down Liden or Eldene Drive and seeing things that have just been thrown out of cars.”