A MIDDLETON man has revealed he is the mystery ‘hero’ who jumped into action to prevent a robbery – only to find out it was was being shot for an upcoming film.

Michael Roberts, 66, has admitted being the man caught on camera grabbing balaclava-clad actor Jason Redshaw as he ran down Main Street during filming.

“I was heading to the dentist and I looked up and saw this man quite close,” laughed Mr Roberts, a former special constable with Cumbria Constabulary in Sedbergh.

“He was wearing a balaclava and carrying an antique lamp, with another man behind him who I assumed was chasing him.

“My first reaction was to think: ‘He’s stolen that!’ They were about to dash down an alley so I put my hand out and grabbed him and asked him what he was up to.

“A millisecond later I saw the cameras!”

The scene was being shot as part of feature film, 27 Memory Lane, which was also filmed in nearby Millthrop.

Mr Roberts has been the talk of the town since the incident.

“My friends and family and wife, Moira, have all found it very funny,” he continued.

“It all happened really quickly and I felt a bit silly but luckily the crew saw the funny side of it too. We all fell about laughing and everyone in the dentist thought it was hilarious.”

Mr Roberts’ identity remained a mystery until an article in the Gazette last week prompted him to come forward.

“I felt like a bit of an idiot because I thought I was doing the right thing,” he added. “I bet I’ll see myself in a few years on one of those out-take programmes.”

Mr Redshaw, who plays the thief in the film, said he could ‘see the funny side’.

“On that particular take, dressed head-to-toe in black and wearing a rather menacing balaclava, I was grabbed and pushed against the wall,” he said. “Rather worried that I was about to get a thump, I shouted: ‘We are making a film, we are filming!’”

The film, about a GP who travels back in time to win back the women he loves, has been directed by Lancashire film-maker, Luke Hupton.