A man has been recognised for his role with a Suffolk male choir which he has conducted for the past 45 years.

Colin Edgar, 77, of Blacksmiths Lane, Earl Stonham, who leads the Suffolk Constabulary Male Voice Choir, is to be awarded the British Empire Medal.

When he joined the choir in the 1960s he was teaching music at Thurleston High School, in Ipswich.

He said: “When I was young in the Midlands I started singing in the church choir when I was five. My dad and mother had a pub and quite often people would play the piano and I got fascinated with it so I taught myself to play.

“By the age of 10 I could play reasonably well and then I started to play the organ in churches and it’s gone on from there.”

He moved to Ipswich in 1958 and has since played in dozens of church in the county. He played at the parish church in Stowmarket for 12 years before joining a rota to play organ in the Earl Stonham area.

He ran musical classes for several years raising thousands of pounds for St Elizabeth Hospice.