AN 83-YEAR-OLD artist who feared his “life’s work” had been taken away has thanked the public for helping him get it back.

Brian Waddington has spent the last 50 years painting and had more than 100 of his framed pieces in storage in a workshop behind his home in Medway Drive, Horwich.

But, when he woke up on Sunday, December 22, he found that all of his work had been taken by thieves who broke into the wooden shed.

His family took to social media, hoping the paintings would have been dumped somewhere and appealing for anyone who might have spotted them to get in touch.

What followed was a huge response from the public which resulted in nearly all of the work being recovered.

Mr Waddington’s granddaughter Sophie Waddington thanked the people of Horwich for their support.

“Thank you so much everyone, we think the majority have been returned, there are definitely still some missing but not too many now,” she said.

“Although lots of the frames were smashed and they were all very muddy the actual paintings have stayed in excellent condition and my grandad is absolutely thrilled to have them back.

“He was particularly sad about one painting that he was very proud of and that was in this batch and intact.”

The first pile of paintings was recovered from a field off Wingates Lane, still in their plastic covering, while another batch was found dumped down a hillside in an area of woodland in Rivington.

Both were discovered by a passersby who had heard about the theft through the Waddington family’s appeals and were able to spot the paintings and get in touch.

Following the search, Miss Waddington said she had received a number of inquiries about buying some of her grandfather’s work, with others asking if the pieces were on display anywhere.

“I can’t thank you all enough for following this little story and for all the kindness and shares,” she said.

“We also cannot believe how many people have messaged me asking if my grandad’s paintings are on display or for sale anywhere and asking if we could set up an exhibition of his work.

“I asked him about this and he would love to show everyone his work.

“He is so grateful for each and every person who has shared, searched and commented on the posts and is feeling quite famous - so I will set this up in the New Year.”