Plane crazy in Shropshire as cockpit owner lives out his dream

Retired businessman Derek Leek is plane crazy – he has the 17 feet long cockpit of a B2 Canberra Bomber in his back garden.

The 70-year-old grandfather is on cloud nine after making a boyhood dream come true by splashing out £4,000 on the flying relic and insists: "It was money well spent." The eye-catching ornament was delivered by crane and stands in a steel frame on blocks at his the half acre plot in Alveley, near Bridgnorth.

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Mr Leek, a former industrial metal finishing consultant who grew up in Whitmore Reans, Wolverhampton, said: "Some people might suspect I am mad but I think it is very attractive.

"I am different and like to have this in my back garden. I give the metal an affectionate pat every time I go past. I also spend a fair amount of time sitting in it and imagining what it would have been like for those who flew in it. You have to keep reminding yourself three men almost lived in it."

The cockpit came from a plane built in 1952 and cut up in the 1970s. Mr Leek bought it from a Gloucester enthusiast.

He said: "I remember sitting in a glider when I was a kid in Wolverhampton and seeing a mock-up of a Canberra at a RAF display in West Park. Once seen, never forgotten. Those childhood memories have stayed with me ever since.

"I find comfort in the past. I longed to have a plane of my own one day and now those dreams have come true. It is an old man's toy."

Mr Leek confessed: "I have a little bit of the eccentric in me and I am delighted with the cockpit. It is very authentic and in good condition but I am looking forward to spending time this summer bringing it right up to scratch."

The house next door is the only other property from which the plane can be seen and there are no complaints from the residents as it is his step daughter Sarah, her husband Doug and their three children Caitlin,10, David aged nine and three year old Evie.

Mr Leek's wife Gloria said: "I have got no problem with it. The grandchildren love to come round to play in the cockpit and so do many adults as well." Other ornaments include a phone box, a wooden giraffe and a model of the Queen Mary.