Britain's tallest man looks for stardom

Britain's tallest man has revealed plans to reach for acting stardom. Record-breaker Neil Fingleton, from Gilesgate in County Durham, wants to capitalise on his height and talent to become a Hollywood actor.

The 26-year-old has already spent some time playing basketball in America, and is now awaiting a work permit. He says he has received a number of offers, and is hoping he will be able to use his 7ft 7ins (2.31m) height to his advantage.

Mr Fingleton said: "There are tens of millions of people in this country, and I'm the tallest, which is a very special thing. "So why not use it to my advantage and be recognised, not just for being tall but for being a talented actor."

He admitted that he had always been fascinated with Jaws in the James Bond films, who was obviously very tall.

"I had the privilege to meet him and did a little bit of acting work with him and it was nice to get advice from him. It's nice to know there are specialised roles for people like me because the strong thing about being tall and having acting ability is that when these parts come along you've got a very strong chance of getting them."