Darts legend Eric Bristow saves day at Shrewsbury event

The five times World Champion darts player and former I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! contestant was drafted in to appear at plumbing merchants Farr & Harris, in Shrewsbury, after Webster sprained his ankle during a professional match the night before.

The Welshman was due to appear in the county town as part of a national tour for his sponsor Glow-worm boilers until being forced to pull out at the 11th hour.

Bristow, who lives in Leek, north Staffordshire, and is famed for turning darts into a worldwide spectator sport in the 1980s, gave tradesman and customers the chance to pit their darting skills against him during the event.

A professional darts board was set up in the car park of the company, on Brassey Road, off Old Potts Way, and Bristow wore his famous Crafty Cockney T-shirt as he played 301-leg games with the workers.

Those who beat him won a set of professional darts worth £30. He also tweeted to his 64,400 followers ahead of the event that it was strange being asked to step in at a plumbers when he lives in Leek.

Mr Bristow, who has played in Shrewsbury before, said: "I got the call last night and was happy to step in. It's a bit of fun and you can't moan about playing darts in this sunshine."

"All the lads here look as if they can play so especially with this wind I can see a few of them beating me. I'm just getting my excuses in early!"