So, how did it all start?

In any good story, there’s always a pub involved, isn’t there? And this is how Villager Jim got his name. But let’s go back a little further.

Jim wasn’t always a photographer. Once upon a time, he worked in a very different business, one that eventually left him burned out and in need of a change. So, in 2008, he moved to the Peak District, marvelled at the beauty of his new surroundings and began taking photographs.

People soon recognised something special in his pictures, and he started selling them to local pubs.

“I live for photographs. It’s an addiction, one I love every second of.”

He put together his first book of wildlife photography and had just three copies printed. Nothing he has published since has been in single figures!

One copy was left in his local pub, where it regularly attracted interest from customers eager to discover the identity of the talented photographer. The helpful landlord was only too happy to point him out.

Not wanting his days of enjoying a quiet pint to be over, Jim came up with the name Villager Jim to preserve his anonymity.

He then set up the Villager Jim Facebook page. What began with 14,000 followers in just six months grew into an audience of more than 453,000, and the numbers continued to climb.

His reputation grew, his followers flocked, and his photographic journey gathered pace.

The Duke of Devonshire granted him access to private areas of his estate. Television appearances followed, along with an impressive collection of photography awards. Yet Jim remained camera-shy by nature, preferring to stay out of the limelight and let his photographs tell the story.

Preserving his anonymity became increasingly difficult, particularly after winning a BBC Springwatch photography competition in 2012 with a wonderful photograph of starlings, selected from 50,000 entries.