A man spent four days trapped in a freezing public toilet in northeast Scotland last week after the door slammed shut behind him and the handles fell off.

Retired teacher David Leggat spent 16 hours of each day in pitch darkness, drinking tap water and fighting off sub-zero temperatures by dipping his feet in a basin of warm water.

The 55-year-old was eventually released when a cleaner, who kept her equipment in the gents' toilets, heard his cries for help and raised the alarm. He was freed last Thursday.

'I had nothing with me to eat so I sipped cold tap water to keep me going,' Mr Leggat said.

His ordeal happened at the crown green bowling club in the city where he is in charge of wine stocks.

'I did a survival course once and knew I had to keep my feet warm, so I kept running a basin of hot water and putting my feet in to send the heat through my body.'

Nobody raised the alarm over his disappearance as Mr Leggat is unmarried and the toilets are rarely used in winter.

'At least there was a toilet to use,' Mr Leggat added. 'The only thing I regret is not getting trapped behind the bar.'