A blood donor has been awarded an honour - after he donated enough red stuff to keep nine people alive.

John Fish, of Great Leighs, Braintree, has been presented with a crystal goblet after giving his 75th pint of blood. That is enough to give full blood transfusions to nine people.

Mr Fish, 62, started donating in 1961 because he wanted to collect the gold medal given to people who donate 50 pints of blood.

He said: "A few of us left the Army at the same time after national service. It sounds naive, but I was hoping to sell the medal to help buy a house."

He added: "There's nothing to it, but giving blood should be a matter of personal choice. It's down to the individual."

Nicki Scott, from the National Blood Service said: "We rely on donors such as John to keep hospitals supplied with the blood their patients require.

"Every day in this country alone we need to collect 10,000 donations of blood and are always on the lookout for potential new donors."

For more information on donating, contact the National Blood Service on 0345 711711.

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