A local celebrity, known as ‘the pirate’ due to his eccentric appearance, has won over the nation after a TV show helped his shed seven stone.

Russell Newland, who works at the South Bucks Hospice Charity shop on Clay Lane, Booker, became famous around Wycombe for his unique look – which included stripy t-shirts, bandanas and cut-off shorts.

His pirate image was born when he started a new job and the site manager declared that they had a pirate on their hands. Reinventing his look to match his new namesake, his appearance became talk of the town.

However, his jolly public persona hid a deep fear for his health and last year, at 20st 13lbs, he grabbed an opportunity to appear on popular TV show, This Time Next Year with Davina McCall, and change his life.

With a goal of losing seven stone and shaking his pirate image, his story featured on the show - which aims to help ordinary people transform their lives in one year - on December 14.

His weight loss journey also helped him raise more than £1,500 for South Bucks Hospice after asking customers at the charity shop to sponsor him.  

Russell said: “Growing up I was the youngest of six siblings. When food was put on the table you had to eat as quickly as you could or risk going without, wasting food was not an option. I didn’t start having problems with my weight until my late twenties.

“I worked at a factory and, because I was the only one who had a motorbike, I used to go and get everyone’s lunches from the pizza place or chip shop. A lot of the girls I worked with could never finish all of their lunch, so I would finish it for them. Before long my weight had begun creeping up.

“At my largest I tipped the scales at 24st 3lbs. I tried various diets and at one point got down to 11st 7lbs, which was aided by my job as a freelance landscape gardener.

“During the winter months work dried up. The stress of having to find a new job and the loss of my beloved mother meant that I started turning to food for comfort.”

This Time Next Year showed Russell gorging on Chinese takeaways but the charity volunteer told Davina he was desperate to look “slimmer and sharper.”

Fast forward to this year, and after embarking on a LighterLife weight loss programme, Russell stunned Davina and the studio audience with his new trimmer appearance.

He said: “I lost my pirate image and found me. I’m confident I will keep the weight off this time because I’ve discovered the tools I need to stop me from slipping back in to old bad habits.”

He also told Davina that he did not miss his pirate image, “but High Wycombe does.”

But while his trademark beaded and tasselled black beard was shaved off for the show, he has reassured his fans that it will be regrown.