It started as a bet between friends, but a man from Norfolk has gone on to donate his 100th pint of blood.
Tim Amos, from Fakenham, reached the milestone on December 18 at Fakenham Community Centre.
His first donation came after a bet with his friend in 1963.
While training for his career as an electrician, his friend, who was a member of the RAF at the time, bet him a pint of beer that he would not come along to donate blood.
A trip to the town’s church hall was followed swiftly by a trip to the pub, and Mr Amos' journey to 100 pints started.
Since then he has been like clockwork, donating as much blood as he can a year. This year he has made the trip to the Fakenham practice three times.
Earlier this year, he was told his blood was being used in St Thomas' Hospital in London, where prime minister Boris Johnson was taken earlier in the year to be treated for coronavirus.
The 77-year-old said he will not stop until he is told to.
“It feels like quite an achievement, it’s not a goal but a milestone and I will carry on for as long as I can,” he said.
“I think somewhere along the line, you get taken out for a meal but I don’t do it for that.
“I do it to help people, you hear people in accidents and people giving blood to help those and especially with the world at the moment they probably need more and more.”
He said not much has changed over the years since he started his donations, apart from the masks and temperature checks during the pandemic.
He has made all his donations in his home town of Fakenham.
While some people could think of nothing worse than volunteering to have a needle in their arm, he doesn’t mind at all.
“The needles don’t bother me, you might end up with a bruise but apart from that it doesn’t have an effect,” he said.
“You get the choice of arm but it does not matter to me.
“You give the blood, you get a cup of tea and a biscuit and job done.”
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