Accident 'hero' stole story from real rescuer

LONDON - A British man feted as a hero for saving the lives of a pilot and passenger in a burning plane has admitted that he stole the story from the real, more modest, rescuer.

Nigel Gallimore, 41, from Bournemouth, was awarded the Queen's Commendation for Bravery last May, for dragging David Bougourd and pilot Robert Le Page from the crashed light-aircraft as it went up in flames in August 2004. But yesterday he admitted: "In the heat of the moment I probably said things that didn't happen."

His tale of bravery belonged to Michael Winstanley, who arrived at the scene of the plane crash before Gallimore. He was driving his van and saw both men dazed after escaping the blaze. He dragged them both to safety, sheltering them as the plane exploded behind his van. A third man, Andrew Anderson, a 41-year-old financial assistant, was killed.

While Winstanley remained anonymous, Gallimore became a local celebrity after receiving the commendation on the back of the publicity. Yesterday, he told Bournemouth coroner Sheriff Payne at the inquest into Anderson's death that he had embellished the tale.

Winstanley, 52, a window fitter who was a corporal serving in Northern Ireland, Germany and Cyprus, said outside court: "I'm not a hero. I just had to do it. For him to turn around and claim the Queen's Award for Bravery which I don't deserve, he doesn't deserve it."

- INDEPENDENT