Allotment holder Ignatius Stewart is looking forward to enjoying the fruits of his labours after growing his largest pumpkin.

Ignatius, who is retired, works on the allotment in Leyes Road, Custom House with his wife Joan. She plants the seeds and he helps grow them once they have sprouted.

He said: “We have been doing the allotment for six to seven years but this is the first time I have grown one as big as this.

“I don’t know how or why. Its just one of those things. Its grown from a seed from a big pumpkin that somebody gave me.”

And although it is Hallowe’en, Ignatius, who lives in nearby Victoria Dock, has no plans to carve a spooky lantern out of it - he intends to put it to good use in his kitchen and distribute it to friends. After all, he will need their help to move it as its far too heavy for him to lift alone.

He will also make sure he keeps some seeds, ready for a bumper crop next year.