A BEE keeper, charity worker and parish councillor from a village near Selby will carry the Olympic flame through the town this summer.

Graham Crerar, of Wistowgate, Cawood, will run with the flame when it passes through the town on June 19, and was nominated by his workmates at Civica Education, where he works as a consultant.

Mr Crerar, 50, who is press officer with the Yorkshire Bee Keepers’ Association, said: “It was a surprise, when I was nominated, but it is quite a long process.

“I’m very excited, as you can imagine. I’m really pleased to be doing it, it is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, for my family and children as well.”

Mr Crerar was put forward by his colleagues in part for his work with the Butterfield’s Edward Johnson Trust, which works with under-privileged children in India and Pakistan, a charity he became involved with about 20 years ago.

He said: “They help look after children, run hostels, and try to get them into education and into work.

“When we were there, we used to help by taking out clothes and feeding people out there, that kind of thing. We’ve been doing that for about 20 years, and the Trust has been running for about ten or 15.”

Mr Crerar, who will be 51 when he runs with the flame, said his wife, Virginia, and children Holly and Sam will all be helping to line the streets of Selby to see him with the torch. He has bought the torch he will be carrying, to keep as a souvenir.

He said: “I will be running it, I hope, but part of me wants to walk and make the most of it.

“Holly and Sam are both very excited too. We’re taking them out of school that day in the morning. It’s the flame that gets passed on, not the torch itself, so I’ve already bought mine for £200. I’m hoping the money goes to charity.”

Mr Crerar also said his run with the torch on the morning of June 19 wouldn’t be the end of his celebrations: “We also thought we might put up on of our marquees and put on bacon sandwiches to celebrate and have a bit of a party, make the day last a bit longer.”