An 82-year-old was finally able to fulfil his wish of skydiving, despite six previous unsuccessful attempts.

Bernard Bibby says he was "cheesed off" after the charity event at Headcorn Aerodrome kept getting pushed back due to bad weather.

But he finally managed to complete the 12,000ft jump and made sure to get it on camera for good measure.

"We got up there and it was fantastic," he said. "I knew what I was in for.

"I was looking out the side window as the aircraft started to climb and I watched the M20 getting smaller and smaller, to the point that it became a little line between green bushes.

"Then you're sitting in the opening of the aeroplane with your legs tucked underneath.

"You are eased forward into a 125-mile-an-hour slipstream of air. That's the bit I didn't expect.

"All of a sudden, your breath is taken away just for a minute and then you settle into it.

"It's fantastic. He pulled the ripcord and the chute opened - you get the feeling that you're actually stationary in midair."

Bernard put himself up for the challenge in August last year and is collecting money for Cancer Research UK in memory of his wife Celia.

She passed away in January 2015 after months of treatment following a diagnosis of skin cancer.

The Bexley-born retiree moved to Sittingbourne around 60 years ago with Celia, who worked as a consultant psychologist.

He now lives in a flat at a retirement complex in Chatham and regularly attends ballet classes and his local gym to pass the time.

Last year, Bernard was booked for jumps in September, October and November, but each kept getting postponed due to poor conditions.

"I have to admit, I was getting fed up," he added. "After six attempts, I was a bit cheesed off."

On Monday, August 25, he made sure to get to the Headcorn Aerodrome extra early.

He spoke with a number of people set to do the jump, including some who had never even flown in an aeroplane before.

He said: "After landing, they had great big smiles on their faces. It was lovely. Everybody should try it.

"For me, it was over too fast. It took us about 10 to 12 minutes to get to altitude.

"The descent couldn't have been more than five minutes."

It was over so fast that the 82-year-old, along with his son David and friend Sophie, went and found a pub to celebrate the achievement.

Over the years, Bernard believes he and Celia have raised and donated thousands of pounds to various charities.

In September 2017, beauty therapists were set to wax his entire body at a club's entertainment night; however, the event was cancelled by the venue hosts with less than 48 hours to go as they felt "customers weren't comfortable watching that".

He also regularly dresses up as Miss Orchid to raise awareness for the male cancer charity Orchid.

So far, nearly £800 has been donated on his GoFundMe page, which has been running since last year.

More is set to be totalled up by the team at the Cancer Research UK shop in The Forum, who have been supporting Bernard during his skydive attempts.

If you'd like to contribute, click here.

When asked what crazy activity is next for the retiree, he said: "I've got to find something else to do - I'm bored!

"Somebody said I could go to Africa for two weeks and wash elephants. I've got to look into all the possibilities."