Don't drop litter, urges award-winning 90-year-old

Michael Barnfather, 90, has been collecting litter for the last 10 years

At the age of 90, Michael Barnfather still collects litter in his area, and aims both to inspire other people to do the same and also urge them to stop dumping their rubbish.

The former artist has been picking up litter around his home village of Caerwent, Monmouthshire, for the past 10 years because he hates seeing it.

"If more people took a bag with them when they go for a walk [to collect litter], I think that would be useful," he said.

He recently won two trophies at the Tidy Wales Awards 2024, including the Volunteer of the Year and the Outstanding Achievement Award.

Michael, who is originally from Derbyshire, spent several decades travelling around England as a landscape artist, and it was on these trips that he started getting annoyed about the litter he saw.

"I would think 'what a mess', but I didn't do anything about it," he said.

"But then I thought, why moan about it? So I started picking up litter and I'm still doing it," he said.

He said he hoped his work would help inspire others to do the same, and he has seen neighbours following his lead and start collecting in the area.

He described meeting a six-year-old boy while out on one of his walks.

"He told me that he wanted to help protect the environment. I was surprised he even knew the word at his age - it was very nice."

Michael won twice at this year's Tidy Wales Awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award, which he said shocked him.

The judges praised him for having "worked tirelessly" to keep his neighbourhood tidy, and that he "continues to amaze local residents", including inspiring other families to join his efforts.

Michael is often joined on his walks by his partner, Meg, 87 - who playfully referred to herself as his assistant - describing how they fit their walks between dance classes and lawn bowls.

"People here are very proud of him," she said.

"I'm very proud of him - I continue to be amazed by the amount of energy he's got."

Michael believes the amount of litter has worsened in recent years, and he often fills up several bags in just a few weeks.

Asked what message he had for people, he said simply: "Please don't litter."

"Or carry a bag with you if you do go for a walk.

"You don't have to pick much up - if everybody just picked up a little bit up it would help quite a lot," he said.